Secrecy Unjustified
by Mikadaphne28
Summary: *UNDER MAJOR RECONSTRUCTION* It's not always easy adapting, most especially to life. If life gives you lemons, what do you do? You make lemonade. Easy, right? But how can you make it if you don't even know how or where to start? "You just have to trust in me. It's all you have to do." * Sci-Fi (Coarse Language & Heavy Violence in later chapters) *UNDER MAJOR RECONSTRUCTION*
1. Welcome to New York, The City of Secrets

****Secrecy Unjustified****

Disclaimer: POM belongs to its rightful owners. I only own OCs and maybe or not the plot line and histories of characters. ~ Layla, out (No more author notes unless necessary)

* * *

**Prologue: Welcome To New York, The City of Secrets**

"Do you have something to say, Mr. Jackford?" The man in question looked up from the dusty floor he was kneeling on.

"Please," the man's speech slurred from his loss of teeth and his eyes had a hard time concentrating on the evil glint of metal in front of him with his black eyes, "don't do it. Please." The light filtering from the window behind him didn't do him any good.

"We don't make the rules. We enforce them."

"It's not my fault. I had to do it for my family-" The boy behind the gun holder glared at the man.

"Liar! Your entire family's dead. You don't have kids or a wife. You're just trying to save your own butt."

"Calm down." The boy stepped back and the man turned back to Jackford. "Well, Jackford? Any last words?" The man just stared at the ground. "For the good of American soil-"

"The Underground."

"The what?"

"The Underground." Jackford repeated and looked up at the other man, who slowly lowered the gun. "It's what they call the system of criminals in this city."

"The Underground?" The boy repeated in confusion.

"Are you deaf?" Jackford snarled at him and he received a punch from another man.

"Watch it, bud. You're on a thin line here." The leader glared down at Jackford, who wiped the blood from his mouth and shook his head. "Now explain. Who's in the Underground and what are they doing?"

"That's for me to know, and for you idiots to find out." Another man placed a hand on the leader.

"I think the Underground's just a wild goose chase." The leader turned to him. "Maybe he's trying to lead us somewhere else."

"The Underground is run by New York's worst. And I'm sure you would know all of them. Most especially the Doc." The leader narrowed his eyes at Jackford.

"Are you telling me Dr. Blowhole's behind all this?"

"Maybe, maybe not. But I can tell you that he is the cause of this."

"Does he hate humanity this much?"

"Hate?" Jackford sneered in disgust and shook his head. "If he hates humans so much, why isn't he on a killing spree now? Don't you think he's acting a little too quiet? Like he's _afraid_?"

"Blowhole? Afraid?" The leader scoffed. "Don't play with us, Jackford. Don't blame it on somebody else."

"Can't you see the truth? I know I can."

"We're wasting our time here, boys. The man's not going to speak."

"You bet I won't. I'll never speak."

"So, I guess your 'family', wouldn't mind if you went away." The leader raised his gun again. "Forever."

"The others will find my body and they will kill you." The leader smirked at him.

"Ain't that sweet?" The gun went off silently and the body slumped to the ground. The leader tucked the gun under his clothes and walked out of the room, followed by the others. He was about to go downstairs when his eyes saw a foot appear from round the corner.

"…I'm telling you," the leader quickly ducked and hid in the shadows of some boxes, with the others doing the same, just as two men appeared at the top of the stairs and walked away, "those four are as slippery as a snake. We should double the defenses." The companion of the speaker just shook his head.

"I know, man. But you just have to trust the boss on this. He knows what he's doing."

"I swear, the boss can be so stupid sometimes." His companion shook his head and placed his rifle on his shoulder.

"Let's just go check on the prisoners." The voices and footsteps faded and the group of four hurried down the steps, avoided a few more guards and slipped out a back door. They settled into some bushes nearby just as a siren echoed inside.

"Looks like they found the empty cage." The leader turned to his companions. "All detonators in place?" One of the men nodded to him and pulled out a remote.

"Yup."

"In five. Four, three, two, one."

A day before…

"Gloria! Gloria!" The bubbly-looking African American lady dressed in a loose skirt, bangles, sneakers and a blouse with pure black eyes turned around to face the Asian lady running toward her.

She had reddish brown eyes and Asian features with curly copper-black hair that was tied up while part of it covered one of her eyes. She also had on a pair of ridiculously huge, thick framed black glasses that covered half of her face.

"Oh thank goodness you were just sitting 'round." The first lady got up and greeted the newcomer, who placed her helmet on the table.

"Yeah, girl. Got a prob?"

"Major." The lady licked her lips and grinned widely. "Like, how can I ever thank you?" Gloria raised a brow at her and returned her smile.

"What happened?"

"I got it!" The Asian bit her lower lip as her cheeks flushed from the excitement and exhaustion. "Well, actually, we got it."

"Got what exactly, Selena?"

"Oh don't tease, G."

"I'm curious, Sel. What exactly did you guys get?"

"We got-" Selena was interrupted as a Californian woman appeared from behind her in the same state as the Asian.

"The place! The one you were talking about? We got the permit and everything and we're moving in, guess when?" The Californian had chocolate brown skin, hazel green eyes, wavy brown hair with side swept bangs and would've been mistaken for a college student because of her height and innocent aura.

Gloria crossed her arms and looked at the two females. "When, Marlene?"

"Tomorrow! We're staying in New York! We're staying in New York!" The two ladies grabbed each other's arms and squealed in delight before hugging each other.

"Oh my gosh!" Selena patted her cheeks. "I can't wait to tell the other two." Marlene waved her phone in the air with a giddy smile.

"Already did!" The two looked at each other and squealed again. Gloria's eyes grew wide and she cupped her hands over their mouths.

"Girls." Marlene and Selena looked at Gloria who dropped her hands with a quick look around. "You're gonna wake up the whole neighborhood. It's still early."

Selena shook her head, the happiness still evident on her face. "Well, at least it'll save those crucial battery cells on their cell phones and alarm clocks." Gloria rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"So, when do you move in?"

The girls looked at each other with the same 'I knew it, she wasn't listening because of someone' looks.

Present time…

Marlene pushed open the door and twirled into the room with a huge grin. "Welcome to home, guys!"

"Whoa." The two females who followed her in with bags in hands looked about in awe. One of the females was a strawberry blond haired lady. If not for the belt with her nickname 'Barbie' on the rhinestone buckle, the woman would've been mistaken for a nicely tanned punk rock fashion model with straight cut bangs. Her companion, though, seemed a bit gentler with her cream skin, chestnut brown eyes, and her bubbly and bright attitude matched her self-designed clothes and young age. She usually wore a dress, skirt or skinny jeans, now a white dress with a green scarf and maroon flats, and her dark red hair in a neat ponytail with bunny clips and pieces of her hair framing her face.

The blonde placed the laptop bag she had in hand on the couch and continued looking around with a smile. "This is so cool."

The redhead beside her flopped onto the couch with a squeal. "This is awesome! It's the best place I have ever seen! Well," she sat up with a cushion on her lap and shrugged, "an actual house would be nice, but this is still pretty awesome."

Marlene placed her hands on her hips and heaved out a satisfied sigh. "Yeah. It'll have to do."

A couple thumps behind the brunette brought her to Selena, who was leaning on the doorway. "Thanks for the help, guys. I really appreciate it."

"You didn't really need to bring the bags."

Selena blinked at her before picking up the bags.

"In that case."

"Whoa there, girl," the Asian paused on her way out, "you also do not need to throw them out and make us go for it."

She turned to Marlene with a snarl. "Oh yeah?" Marlene shook her head with a smile and gestured inside.

"Come on. Why don't you just sit on the couch and check out for a while? I'm sure the three of us can handle the rest."

"I can do it." The slam of the door indicated that she was gone. Marlene sighed exasperatedly and turned to the other two.

"Can I get some help here? Kyle?"

"I believe I'm going to school tomorrow?" The redhead replied with a knowing grin and got up. "So, I'm just gonna crash in the room you two have labeled for me. Like now." She skipped to a room and closed the door quietly.

"Barbie?" Marlene turned to the blonde, who shook her head.

"Like she said, she can do it. Besides, I so know you've got this, Marls. And I really do need to find a job before we _have_ to move again, due to lack of funds."

"Fine. I'll do it. Just make sure you're actually searching up jobs when I get back."

Barbie rolled her eyes and placed the laptop she took out on the coffee table. "Yes mom."

Marlene quickly jogged down the steps and spotted Selena dumping another set of bags into the lobby.

"Hey. Need some help?"

Selena barely gave her glance before walking out the front door with a grumpy look. "I'm getting the other bags." Marlene rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Hey!" Marlene called out to her, thinking about the conversation she had just hours before.

_"By the way," Marlene looked behind at the three, "I got you two enrolled in school." The Californian was in the passenger's seat, with Barbie, Kyle and Selena in the back and in the driver's seat was Gloria, who later on gave Marlene the keys so that she could borrow the vehicle until had their own._

Kyle and Selena both had the same initial reaction to the news.

_"What?! Marlene, that's wonderful/you've got to be kidding me!" Everyone looked at Selena's horrified expression. Even Gloria was staring in shock at the Asian while using the rear view mirror._

Marlene internally shook her head at the memory, still a little confused as to why the book-loving person who she came to know as a lover of learning was shocked that she was finally going back to school. "I'm really sorry about not telling you that I had you and Kyle checked into a school without your acknowledgement, but you know it had to be done!" The car door being shut furiously was her only answer. "Okay. We'll talk about it later." She turned to the bags and picked as much as she could carry before heading up the steps.

"Need help?" A deep, masculine voice called out to her from behind.


	2. New Beginnings

**Chapter 1: New Beginnings**

"Need help?" A deep, masculine voice called out to her from behind.

"Thanks but I think I'm," a scream erupted from Marlene's throat as her foot slipped from the step. "Oh." The Californian stared into a pair of cobalt blue eyes and blushed when she realized that her arms were around the neck of the stranger, whose muscular arm was wrapped around her waist to keep her from falling. Disregarding the bags that had fallen along with her, her eyes roamed over his attire of a collared shirt with the top button off, black pants, a suit jacket, black leather shoes and a simply accessory of a metal bracelet with his black sunglasses piled on his hair. "Um, hi."

"Hey." The man flashed a heart melting smile at Marlene. It took everything in her to stop herself from sighing heavenly and tightening her grip on the man's neck. Marlene looked away with a blush and was quite surprised when she found herself back on her feet. She turned back to see the man standing before with the same smile.

"I'm so sorry." The brunette collected herself and put on a smile of her own. "I can be such a klutz some times."

The man just shook his head.

"Accidents happen. Are you alright, Miss?"

"Uh, y-yeah." Marlene looked away and nodded, feeling the gaze of the man setting her skin on fire. "Thank you."

"Well, we can't have a pretty lady like you falling now, can we?" Marlene turned crimson and fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

"Well, uh, I-"

"Marlene?" The two turned to Selena, who was staring at them with worry etched on her face. Apparently, her scream had reached outside, but not upstairs because there was still no sign of Barbie and Kyle. _They were right about those soundproof walls and doors._ That's when Marlene noticed the boy standing slightly away from them, watching her with curious baby blue eyes.

At the same time, a surly redhead burst out of the door next to one of the potted plants.

"Is everything alright here?" The lady's voice was laced with barely any of the concern she was faking on her face. Marlene's rescuer turned to the lady and spoke to her in a cool tone.

"Everything's just fine, Alice." The lady's sneer couldn't be any worse.

"That's Miss Scheer to you, McGrath."

The man nodded in reply as the boy stepped forward with a smile.

"We're really sorry for the slight disturbance, Miss Scheer. It really was uncalled for during this time of the day. I just hope that the silence that we will provide wouldn't be futile for you."

Alice narrowed her eyes at the boy, but any doubts of his sincerity went away with her next words. "Well then, I guess I'd better get back."

"Of course, Miss Scheer. Have a nice day!" He cheerfully waved after the grumpy woman before turning to the other three with a pout. "Sheesh. What's wrong with her? It's not like we caused the noise this time. Oh." The boy clutched his head in shock rather than pain after a hand collided with it.

"Private." The man hissed at him with a glare, which was returned. "Don't be rude."

The boy's face dropped guiltily and he bowed his head.

"I'm sorry, Skippah." The man's face softened a bit. "I guess I'm a little pi-"

"Excuse me?"

"No! No, of course not! Why would I ever say such a thing?"

"I didn't ask anything."

"Oh."

"But I'm curious. Where did you learn that word?"

The boy blinked his innocent eyes at him. "What word?"

"Don't play with me, young man."

"Um…the tely?"

Skipper crossed his arms with a nod. "Uh huh. Now tell me where you learned that word."

"Uh…"

Selena took a step back and whispered to Marlene. "I think we should go…"

"Yeah," Marlene turned around with Selena, "I think we should-"

"Wait." The girls froze before turning back to the two. "Don't you need some help with those?"

"Oh," Marlene waved a hand away and smiled at Skipper, "thanks, but no thank you. I'm sure you've got better things to do than help us."

"Not really. And we'd be happy to help considering that you would be our new next door neighbors."

"We are? I mean, you're our neighbors?"

The boy dubbed as Private nodded. "Yup. On your left side, at the end." He held out a hand toward the ladies with a smile that was surprisingly similar to Skipper's. "I'm Private McGrath." Marlene took the hand and shook it. The boy went to shake Selena's hand and thumbed toward Skipper. "This is my older brother, Skippah. We were going to greet you in personal later on, but it still is a pleasure to meet you both."

Selena nodded and released his hand. "Same here. I'm Selena-"

"Valentine." Skipper finished with a huge smirk. "And I'm guessing you would be Marlene Sullivan?" He was now looking at Marlene, whose shock was the same as Selena's as they looked at each other. She turned back to Skipper.

"Well, yes, but-"

"And the two upstairs are Barbie McHale and Kalina Millender?"

"Yeah, but how did you-"

"We just know, ma'am." Marlene shook her head and blinked a few times. From the corner of her eye, she spotted Private rolling his eyes and crossing his arms as he muttered under his breath.

"Show-off."

"Um, well," Marlene started to get nervous and she was back to playing with the hem of her shirt, "I wouldn't mind if you would call me Marlene."

"Okay, Marlene. Is there something you want to know?" Marlene blinked again and her eyes stared at the arrogant smirk on his face. _Great, Prince Charming just had to another arrogant jerk. Wait, what did I just call him? _She shook her head and sighed quietly. _And now I'm starting to think like Selena. Great. Just great._ Marlene ran her tongue over her teeth and folded her arms with a cool demeanor, smiling internally at the slight waver in the other's expression.

"Well, actually, I do."

"Then you better start now, woman, because I don't have all day."

"I thought you said you didn't have anything better to do?" He looked taken aback at that and even Marlene had to smile as Private and Selena sniggered. "That was what you said, right?"

"Fine." His mouth had curled into a snarl now. "What do you want?"

"What do I want? I want to know why you know everything."

"Know everything?"

"How do you know my name? And my friend's?"

"I'm sorry, dollface, but that's classified."

"Not if my girls are threatened. I'll put that under stalker category when I report this. Unless-"

Skipper gave her a sly smirk. "Report all you want, for all I care. You're not going to hold anything on me."

Marlene narrowed her eyes at him before turning to Selena.

"Get Jay on the line. Now."

Selena pulled out her cell phone. "Wait, hold it." The two girls turned to Skipper. "You know Jay?" The Asian rolled her eyes while placing her hands on her hips.

"The guy's my father, dude. Of course I would know him?"

"You're THE Valentine?"

"I thought you knew everything, bud?"

"But nobody told me…" Skipper trailed off and looked at Private, who stared back at him in confusion.

"What?" His brother's stare turned into a glare. "Wait a minute. I didn't know that either. I think Kowalski would've said something if he knew. And obviously Rico doesn't either, so you cannot blame any of us. Swear. Cross my heart. I don't want to die." Skipper rolled his eyes at that and turned back to Marlene and Selena. His eyes grew wide when he noticed that the latter's phone was already at her ear.

"Wait!" Hazel green and brown turned to him. "You don't have to call him. I'll," his shoulders slumped in defeat, "I'll tell you."

"WH-" Private barely got the word out as a petulant Skipper slammed a hand over his mouth.

"You would," Skipper turned back to Marlene, "would you?"

The man nodded and held up the hand which was over Private's mouth.

"Soldier's word, doll. Wouldn't break it for my life."

Marlene glanced over at Selena and nodded to the side. Skipper and Private watched as the phone disappeared into a pocket before letting out a sigh.

"Before you say anything," Skipper let Marlene close her mouth before continuing, "I already said that I would tell you, but only what you need to know. The rest is really top secret and I'm in no position to reveal such information."

"Are you in the military or something?"

"Used to be."

Private nodded and took a step forward, making sure he was out of reach from his brother. "And you'll have to pardon him if he goes all 'commando' crazy. He can't help it." He ignored the glare that was sure to come his way.

"You're in the same team, dofus, in case you've forgotten."

"Team?"

Skipper turned back to Marlene. "Love to explain everything to ya, doll, but the wall's got ears. No matter how soundproof they are." He picked up the bags without any effort, urging Private to take the rest. When he was sure that Private had secured the rest, Skipper gave Marlene a wink before marching up the stairs.


	3. Just Getting Started

**Chapter 2: Just Getting Started**

"He so tricked us." Marlene muttered under her breath as she paced back and forth.

"We get it already." Gloria rolled her eyes. "Now would you stop trying to make a hole in my carpet and just sit down?"

Marlene stopped with fists by her sides.

"I will not sit down until justice is done! Don't tell me what to do!" Gloria raised a brow at the female and crossed her arms with a frown.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry." The female sat down on the chair, facing the couch Gloria and Selena was sitting on.

"Now," Selena spoke lazily while pulling at a loose string on her shirt, with her feet hanging off the edge of the couch, "you can vent your anger."

"He tricked me!" Selena jumped at the tone, surprised that her friend actually followed what she said. "He made sure we were all in before he and his brother jumped out the window and into their apartment!"

"Yeah," Selena shrugged after gathering herself back together, "there was that, but ya gotta admit. That thing they did was so awesome. I mean, who would even dare to jump out the window? Aside from suicidal beings, that is."

"And stuntmen?" Gloria added and Selena nodded.

"There are those people too."

"You guys!" Marlene whined and the other two turned back to her. "You have got to help me out here." Selena shook her head and let her head rest against the arm of the couch.

"Do you want to trick him or something?"

Gloria shook her head. "Na ah. You don't want to do that."

"Why not?" The two chorused with curiosity in their eyes.

"You just don't. Trust me. The last person who did that got so publicly humiliated that he hid out in the hospital right after." Selena leaned forward on the cushion she had placed on her lap.

"Wow. Sounds like a real bad boy."

Marlene rolled her eyes, knowing about her friend's fairytale fantasies. "Don't be ridiculous, Selena. He's obviously dangerous."

"She's kinda right, Sel."

Selena just played with the embroidery on the pillow as Marlene turned to Gloria. "Do you know him, G?"

"Maybe."

"So you do?"

"Yeah, I suppose I do…" Marlene's eyes grew wide. "But he's not bad either, guys. He and his team. In fact, if it weren't for them, Alex, Marty, Mel and me would still be stuck on Madagascar…and I probably would have married Jacundo instead of being with Melman right now."

"No. Way." Selena and Marlene stared at the female, who nodded solemnly.

"It's true. So, you see, Marlene-"

"If you're telling me to forgive him for what he did, I already did. A long time ago, actually."

"Then what are you so angry about?"

"Because he promised!" She got to her feet in a slight rage and the chair she was sitting on fell back. "I'm angry because he promised, but he didn't keep it. I just hate people like that."

"Actually," Selena pushed the pillow to the side and slipped her feet into her shoes, "it was a soldier's word, and knowing he's not a soldier anymore…" Selena stopped tying the laces of one shoe and looked up at Marlene's glare. "Did I say something wrong?"

"You just had to tell me that now, didn't you?"

Selena seemed to think about something before shrugging.

"Eh."

Gloria was getting tired of arguing with her defiant friend, so she got to her feet with a sigh. "It's been a week now, Marls. You should be over it by now."

Marlene frowned and crossed her arms. "I'm not going to some silly party when we all know he's going to be there. I'm going to strangle him if I see him even once."

"That's gonna be a sight." Gloria murmured under her breath while Selena jumped to her feet, her face a mask of surprise and shock.

"And miss out on one of the best parties ever?"

Marlene crossed her arms and spoke in a sullen tone. "It's just a party."

"It's a party, hosted by THE Julien Jacobs! Do you not get it? The guy's as famous as Alex!"

Gloria copied her sour friend's actions and glared at Selena.

"What am I? Expired cheese?"

Selena gave her a sweet smile. "Oh no, darling. I would never let cheese get expired. You can trust me on that." Gloria rolled her eyes and went to grab her things. Selena turned back to Marlene, this time dropping the smile and her hands on the other's shoulders. "I know I'm acting like a jerk right now, but I don't really care about that guy. This is a party. You're supposed to enjoy things with parties. You," she started to shake her, "are," Marlene tittered a bit on her feet, "going."

"Fine!"

"What?"

"I said fine. I'm, we're going. You were going to guilt trip me later anyway." A Cheshire grin was flashed back at her.

"Don't ya know it."

"Well, whatever." Marlene surveyed Gloria's small yet cozy apartment, which the woman had all to herself in the floor below them. "I need to talk to him anyway."

Selena tilted her head at her curiously while Gloria turned her attention back to the two.

"After all you've heard from G?"

"I don't care how sweet G put him as. And from the rumors floating about, I gather that he's a rebel. Obviously only good with having fights. Well, if he wants a fight, I'll give it to him." Selena had completely forgotten about the untied lace on her other shoe as she shook her head and frowned at Marlene.

"Wait, what happened to not going to the meeting and strangling him?"

"It's going to happen sooner or later, right?" Marlene shrugged and righted the fallen chair. "Why not now? Besides, I know you'll feel alone even with Gloria around, so I'll have to go."

"But-"

"I thought you wanted me to go to the party?"

"I do, but-"

"Great. Let's go." She walked out the door, leaving Gloria and Selena to look at each other in surprise. The latter placed a hand on her forehead with a sigh and just slipped the untied laces into her shoes.

"Please tell me this is going to end well."

"Sorry, girl, but I believe you'll have to ask Darla that. She's the psychic around here. You'll meet her later, don't worry."

"Oh gosh. What have I done?"

* * *

"Selena!" Marlene hissed at her friend, who was busy piling her plate with assorted food from the buffet. Gloria was pulled away by Julien Jacobs the minute the trio stepped into the luminous mansion the star owned. The African sent them an 'I'm so sorry' look before she got lost in the throng. Selena had stared star struck after Julien before her eyes spotted the not-so-crowded and slightly hidden buffet table.

Selena turned to her with her nose in the air. "I'm depressed, okay?"

"I don't care. You're lactose intolerant."

"Yeah, that works on milk. But this is cheese."

"Cheese is made from milk, silly."

"Come on. It's cheese! Ooh, mozzarella rolls. And are those cream cheese puffs?" Before she could get another piece, Marlene grabbed her hand and started pulling her away. "Okay fine. We'll come back later. Do you think we can get doggy bags?" Selena looked at her friend, who rolled her eyes, though a smile twitched from the corners of her mouth. "Mind if we chill out in the garden?"

Selena gasped in shock but managed to keep her plate in order when Marlene stopped abruptly and turned to her.

"There's a garden?"

"Outside. Well, obviously, gardens should be outside, but I think, hey!" Selena watched with a pout as a roll fell off her plate while Marlene tugged her out eagerly.

When they were outside, Marlene pulled them to a corner and looked at her friend. "Where is it?" Selena looked back with the same pout.

"My roll rolled away…Anyways," she turned to Marlene and pushed her glasses back up her nose, "why do you want to see it?"

"Well, I know the guy's got a fantastic garden that has Spanish roses. Those flowers are hard to maintain, most especially since it's used to hot weather, not this ever changing climate."

"Ah. That explains it."

"Like you didn't know." Selena just turned away from her and gestured forward.

"Right this way, ma'am. As you can see," they had barely walked a few feet past the marble steps when Selena got tackled to the ground, the pastries now flying through the air. The harsh thud when her skull met the concrete made Marlene wince.

Selena moaned in pain, unaware of the dark shadow hunched over her in what looked to be attack form. Her glasses had skittered elsewhere and all she saw was stars. "Wha, what…" she trailed off and closed her eyes, willing her head to follow her orders.

"Selena?" Marlene carefully approached the female, her eyes focused on the shadow above her friend's body. "Are you alright? Did it bite you?"

"Wh-what?" She forced her eyes open and found herself face-to-face with a Doberman. "What is-" She was interrupted by a huge wet tongue, that slapped all over her face and neck, making her giggle.

"Guardian!" The heavy weight was lifted off her, along with small whimpering sounds. A tall man knelt down on one knee beside her with one hand held out to her. He was dressed in a neatly pressed collared button-up shirt that was tucked into black pants and was paired with a necktie, shiny leather shoes, black watch and a black overcoat with a gray underside, and Selena couldn't help but admire how he wore himself confidently despite the clash of some of the clothes that worked perfectly on him. _Kyle would most definitely call this a 9.5._ "I'm so sorry. My dog doesn't usually tackle innocent by standers." He started to apologize until his ocean blue eyes blinked at her.

"It's fine. He's pretty adorable."

He shook his head and closed his fist over her hand, quickly pulling her up with him. "Uh, yeah."

"Selena," the man froze at the name and his jaw dropped in shock as said girl turned her head to Marlene, "are you alright?"

Selena nodded and dusted her hands, only to stop and looked down at her hands in disgust. "Aw man." She picked off the weird stickiness on her hands. "It's doggy drool with cream. Yuck."

"You can wash it off later."

The man backed away as quietly as possible and pulled the boy, who was watching the entire scene curiously, with him. "Private, come on." The boy sent him a confused frown and the man was just about to drag them away when the voice of the Asian called to him.

"Hey, thanks for taking the dog off."

"I-"

The lady shrugged and continued, apparently not hearing him.

"Well, it's not like I have anything against dogs. It's just…ah, forget it." She smiled at them and then at the dog, which seemed to be smiling back at her. "What's his name?"

Before he could say anything Private did it for him.

"Guardian."

"Guardian?"

"Okay," the man grabbed Private roughly and sent a glare down at the surprised boy, "I think it's time for us to go."

"Wait! Who are you?" Selena tilted her head after the man and stared at his retreating back. "Mickey?" The man paused abruptly. "I knew it." He turned around with a mask of anger and strode back to them, making sure he towered over her. "Whoa." She blinked up at him after taking an unconscious step back. "How-"

"The name's Kowalski."

"Okay, Micks, but I-"

"What did I just say?"

"Okay, I get it. You hate the name. You don't have to get all-"

"No, you don't get it. You don't get anything. You don't. Why can't you just listen to me for once? Why can't you just do that? Is that so hard?"

"Listen, I was just-"

"Just what?"

In a huff, she crossed her arms and pouted at him. "Maybe if you would just shut up and listen, I could finish my sentence?"

"You never finish anything."

"I think you just described yourself." Her cool demeanor seemed to piss Kowalski off even more, if his fists were any indication. Selena glanced down at his hands and back at him with a raised brow. "Are you going to hit me now?" He visibly relaxed and crossed his arms, still looking down at her.

"Like I'll waste anything with you. You worthless piece of hey!" A loud smack followed the slap Selena gave Kowalski to his head. The lady gruffly crossed her arms and glared back at him.

"For your information, you were the one who started this. Don't you dare get angry with me. I have done nothing to you."

"But why do you have to target me all the time? Isn't there anyone worthy of your time?"

"You started this. And I'm fine, thank you for asking."

"I don't care what happens to you. Just get lost."

"Fine with me, jerkface."

By this time, Skipper and another man, who had a scar across his face, had joined the group outside.

"What did you just call me?"

"I don't recall you being deaf."

Kowalski just shook his head in annoyance. "I've had enough." He walked past the female and unknowingly stepped on something, which produced a weird crunching sound from under his perfectly shined dress shoes.

A soft gasp escaped from Selena's lips when Kowalski stepped back. "My glasses."

"You can still see." Kowalski murmured and walked away, but stopped at the sound of sneakers against gravel. He turned back to see the Asian running away and sadness overcame him. After he bent down to pick up the broken spectacles, a foot spanned into his view. He looked up just as the foot rammed into his side, sending his breath out of his lungs. The move even made him stagger back a bit and he looked up at an angry looking Marlene, who quickly grabbed his shirt and pulled him up to her face.

"You can trick me all you want," she hissed and her hands curled tightly into his shirt, "but if you ever mess with my friend again, you'll get more than that."

Guardian snarled and glared at Marlene, who did the same and emitted a growl from her throat. The dog immediately backed down with a whine and Marlene turned back to Kowalski.

"You got it?" Too shocked and out of breath to reply, he just nodded. "Great. If you're not going to be nice, at least back off before I call Jay." At the mention of the name, he looked up at her in shock. She let him go with a slight push and hurried after Selena, who had disappeared past the huge gates.

"I-I didn't mean it." Kowalski heaved when he turned back to look at his friends. "You know I didn't. Right, Private?" The boy looked at the glasses and back at the man in uncertainty.

"Well…"

"Sorry."

Skipper shook his head. "Sorry's not gonna cut it. He's going to kill us. He'll make us do laps around the entire city, fifty times."

Private and the other man paled at this and Kowalski, who was forcing himself to stand despite the pain, bowed his head in shame.

"I'll fix this."

"If this explodes-"

Kowalski glared at him and cut him short. "I don't think that's going to happen, Skipper, because I'm not planning on using any kind of device against her. All I need is permission to go home. It's going to take me a while."

"This better work."

"It WILL, Skipper. I know her. I just need Rico to help me get the materials I need. You can continue the babysitting job on the subject with Private."

"It's not a…" Kowalski raised a brow at him. "Fine. So it is. I don't want it to be called that."

The scarred man crossed his arms and grinned.

"D guy's a hugh bab'. (The guy's a huge baby.)"

"Unfortunately. But you two are not getting off the hook on this mission, you hear me?"

"Yes sir." The two chorused before heading off into the trees. Skipper turned to Private who was lost in thought. The man nudged the boy and was met with a small frown.

"I don't think Marlene's happy with what we did last time we met, Skippah."

"I don't really care, Private. The lady deserves it."

"And why?"

"That was classified information she was after. I told her that, but did she listen? No."

"But we didn't have to ditch her and Selena like that."

"She is demanding information civilians shouldn't know about."

"Well, you shouldn't have showcased it in the first place. Ow." Private held his head after Skipper smacked the back of his head.

"She was blackmailing me, don't you forget that, young Private. Now drop the subject. We still have a royal brat to take care of." Private dropped his hand and sighed in resignation.

"Yes, Skippah."


	4. Forever Forgiving

**Chapter 3: Forever Forgiving**

Barking sounds erupted into Selena's dream of a picnic with a mysterious stranger on a breezy hillside and she felt about for her phone. When she found it, she turned over on her bed and looked at the screen.

"Wait a minute," her eyes flew open and she stared at the blank screen, "my alarm does _not_ bark. The barking sounds continued and she turned her head to the door.

The person in the bed at the opposite wall moved and spoke after a yawn.

"What's going on?"

Selena pushed herself off the bed and headed out. "I'll get it." She was just about to open the front door when the barking stopped. "Okay, what is…" The lady blinked at the emptiness before her, then looked down. "Guardian?" The dog sat obediently until his name was said. He then picked up the basket with his teeth and trotted in. He placed the basket down and bowed his head to Selena while trotting back out and positioning himself at the doorway. Selena stared after the dog in astonishment and then turned her attention to the basket. A piece of cloth was covering the contents of the basket. She bent down and took it off, gasping in shock and delight at the sight before her. "Oh my." She picked up the white card stuck to the handle of the basket and read it.

"'I'm sorry," Selena muttered out loud with a small smile. "I don't know what I was thinking. In fact, I'm pretty sure the hangover I got is punishment and proof for what I did yesterday. Guardian brought you my little peace offering. I'm not going to write down how long it took to finish it. I just hope you like it. I'm really sorry, Selena. Sincerely, MKDB.' Aw…"

"MKDB?" Selena whirled about to see Marlene, who had staggered out after her, half-asleep, half-awake.

"Oh, that's Mi-Kowalski's initials."

Her long time best friend shook her head and scoffed, now fully awake.

"If he thinks a note is gonna-"

Selena pocketed the note and looked up at Marlene. "I think it's enough, Marlene."

"I think not. He should be doing it in person. And he was drunk? What a lame excuse."

"Marlene."

"He didn't look drunk. At all!"

"I shouldn't have fuel his anger like that. Clearly, he didn't want to be called something he's not. I mean, you wouldn't like being called something you don't like, right?"

"Well…"

"See?"

"Fine. I won't murder him."

"Thank you, Marley."

"But if he does it again…"

"Don't worry about it. Oh." She turned around and a smile appeared on her face at the sight of Guardian. "Wait right there, baby G." She hurried off into the kitchen, leaving Marlene to stare at Guardian in surprise.

"Guardian?" The dog bowed his head with his paws over his head and Marlene sighed. "Well, I'm sorry, but it kinda looked like you were attacking Sel, and…I am talking to a dog. No, I am apologizing to a dog. Okay," she took in a deep breath, "I'm really sorry for growling at you and all. I just hate it when people, and animals, pick on her. It's like she's not real or something. I hope you can forgive me." Guardian barked once, in a happy tone, and rushed over to Marlene, who held out a hand which the dog licked. "Aw…even if you are a scary dog…"

Selena rushed back into the room, carrying a small box wrapped with one of her favorite lavender ribbons and a small stalk of lavender halfway inserted in one side. She placed the box before Guardian and bent down. "My specialty. Hope you guys enjoy." The dog happily picked the box up and ran out the door. Selena got up with a smile as Marlene raised a brow at her.

"Your specialty? What is your specialty?"

The lady nodded with a mysterious glint to her eye. "Yeah." Marlene frowned before heading back to their room.

"Uh yeah, when it's actually morning, wake me up."

"Got it. I'll get the water boiling."

* * *

As the sun tried to get into the living room, Skipper walked over to the window and observed the streets outside. It was oddly quiet during that time of the day, but it was expected. Who would be mad enough to go out under the intense heat of the sun? The answer came in the form of three females, who had appeared from around a block a couple of streets down and were running this way. Skipper shook his head and was about to walk to the kitchen to get a nice of Joe, when the front door burst open. The blonde lady, who was living with the two females he had cleverly outwitted the other day, was standing there dressed like the Victoria Secret model she was.

"Which one of you is Kowalski?"

"Who are you?" Skipper demanded, still in a defensive position with Kowalski, who had rushed to him with Private though he noticed that the boy had relaxed a bit at the sight of the female.

"I asked first, bud."

He turned his attention to the woman and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Depends on who's asking, Miss McHale."

"Apparently you already know who. Why don't you answer my question?"

"Not unless you're asking nicely."

Barbie snorted and crossed her arms.

"I don't need you. Hey egghead!" The tall man beside Skipper flinched. It wasn't noticeable to others, but under the watchful eye of Barbie, the movement was caught. "You. You're Kowalski, aren't you?"

Kowalski shook his head with a step back from his comrades. "I have no idea what you want with me."

"How about some broken bones?" She took a few steps forward while punching a fist into her other hand. "Who gave you permission to mess around with my cousin, huh?"

"Rico!" Skipper called out before the blonde could take another step. Barbie spun around, only to fall into the hold of the man called Rico. Barbie stared wide eyed at him and noted his clothes, which consisted of a pair of thick black military boots, tattered jeans with a chain belt hanging loosely from his hips, a white, dirt and grease stained shirt, a dark orange jacket and a bowler's hat. Rico's expression was similar as he stared at her with his jaw dropped. He was about to say something when someone called out to her.

"Barbie!" A redhead appeared at the door, hunched over. She leaned against the door as Barbie snapped out of her trance. "Okay," the redhead gestured to Barbie as Selena and Marlene came into the room, "she's over there. And there's no sign of a broken body."

Barbie frowned at them and turned back to Rico. "Let go of me!" She wretched her arms down and took a step back, quickly spinning into a roundhouse kick straight to Rico's head. The man fell to the carpeted ground with a thump, much to the shock of the other three males. She paused briefly to make sure he was alright and then headed straight for Kowalski, who was staring at her along with the other two. "I'm going to…"

Two pairs of hands reached out and gripped her arms tightly.

"Whoa there, girl." Selena cajoled the lady, who was struggling to get away from her and Marlene. "There's no need for you to get a jail sentence now."

"I'm gonna kill him."

"For what?"

"For whatever he did to you!"

"Do you even know what he did?"

Barbie blinked and shook her head, visibly relaxing. Marlene and Selena took the sign to let go of her but they were still wary of her actions since they knew that she wasn't one to keep promises.

"Well, no, but the letter…"

"He was just trying to apologize for…Wait. You read the letter?"

"Uh…So, what were you saying again?"

Selena frowned in suspicion at her. "He was just trying to apologize for _accidently_, stepping on my glasses. It happened during the party. The one you two were not allowed to go to."

"Your glasses are broken?"

"He fixed them."

"Over night?"

"Yup."

"Whoa. That's pretty quick service."

"And I think it's a good enough apology, so if you please?"

Barbie nodded and took a step back. "Okay. But you know that this is the first time a guy's ever ruined your life."

"First, he didn't do anything. Obviously he did not ruin my life. Second, I am accident prone. I'm liable to accidents, on purpose or not."

"I'm still going to keep my eye on you." Barbie's eyes were now trained on Kowalski. "You're probably one of those creeps from high school."

"Excuse me?"

Selena slapped her forehead. "Ugh…" She turned to Barbie and placed her hands on her shoulders, shaking her. "Snap out of it, Barbie. That is not one of those '_creeps_'. That, is the certified class 1997-1998 valedictorian. Your understanding of this situation would be greatly appreciated here."

"Oh. So that's-"

"Don't say it."

"Why not? It's just his name. Right, M-"

"I said don't say it. Don't be a pig."

"Pig?" Private chorused after her, confused at her statement when the lady clearly looked like she worked at the gym daily. Selena turned to him, happy to explain.

"Pigheaded. Stubborn, if you want."

"Ah. Okay."

"Barbie?"

The blonde snapped out of a daydream and gave Selena a frown.

"What?"

"Come on."

Barbie snorted and walked away. "I'm a person, not a slave. I don't succumb to the higher ground." She stopped beside Kyle, who was staring down at Rico. "Uh," Barbie looked down at Rico, who was still on the ground with his eyes closed. Though, there was a hint of a smile on his face. "Is this guy alright? Oh my." She gasped and a worry overcame her. "Was I too hard to him?"

Private shook his head with a grin. "Nah. I don't think so. Rico's got a hard skull. He's probably just trying to scare us or som'thing. Hey Rico." He gently poked the man with his foot and frowned when the man didn't spring up with a grin or laugh. "Rico?"

"Well," Kowalski started and everyone turned to him, "there is such thing as penetrating the fictional barrier."

Skipper rolled his eyes at the statement, obviously disagreeing with the man. He crossed his arms and barked at the motionless man. "RICO!"

Rico jumped to his feet with his hand glued to his forehead.

"Yez sih, Skippa sih! At yur com'an, sih! (Yes sir, Skipper sir! At your command, sir!)"

"Oh great. Nice of you to finally join us, Rico. I'd have to say that your little stunt wasn't appreciated."

Rico blinked in confusion, while slowly putting his hand down.

"Huh?"

"Did I say you can put down your hand?" The hand flew back to its position and Rico stared ahead with an erect posture.

"Nope." Skipper narrowed his eyes at him.

"What is wrong with you, soldier? Don't tell me you've got birds flying about your brain again. You practically slept through Ringtail's music the entire night without earplugs."

"Since when is Rico right, Skipper?" Skipper turned to Kowalski, who casually shrugged and folded his arms. "Well, aside from other reasons."

Rico just chuckled nervously and nodded. "Yup yup." When he realized that his hand had travelled down again, he quickly put it up.

"You can put your hand down now." Rico sighed in relief but jumped when Skipper spoke again. Skipper frowned suspiciously at the man's actions. Rico chuckled again and whistled while looking away. "Twenty four hours worth of maintenance. For putting your guard down."

"Oh come on!" Rico threw his arms in frustration while Kowalski and Private hid their sniggers.

"One week."

"What?!"

"Another complaint and I'll make it a month with daily laps around NY." The man quickly covered his mouth and glared at Kowalski and Private, who were still laughing. Skipper raised a brow at them. "Would you two like to join him?" They shook their heads and bit down on their lips. Skipper watched them go back to their usual business, and then turned to the girls, who were watching the scene with great interest. "Do you have anything else to do here?" Marlene took a step toward him with a hand out.

"I don't think we've formally met. I'm-"

"Leaving." He interrupted roughly with a slight frown marring his face.

The wavy haired brunette blinked at him, her outstretched hand now placed by her side.

"What?"

"You're leaving. All of you. You're not supposed to be here."

"Excuse me?"

"You don't speak English?"

"I do, but-"

"Good. Now do as I say."

"Excuse me?" Marlene repeated with more conviction, feeling the anger from the other night come back.

"I did not take you to be a parrot. Nor did I order one."

"You should be thanking us! We came here to stop her from attacking you! No, wait, you should be apologizing for-"

Skipper rolled his eyes, oblivious to the female's rage.

"And what is a girl going to do to us?"

The room rolled into grave silence, which was only broken by the incredulous claim coming from Barbie's lips.

"Oh no he didn't." Kyle was next with her perfectly manicured hands on her hips.

"I think he just did."

The blond lady's hands curled back into fists as the lady herself started her march over to the stout man.

"Barbie!" Selena called when she realized what the female was going to do. She quickly reached out and held onto her arm, holding her back.

"Let me at him!" Barbie growled, giving the stoic man a death glare. "I'm going to destroy that pipsqueak!" The man's frown turned into a harsh glower.

"What?"

"You heard me, flathead. You and me, one on one. I'm going to crush your tiny-mmpjhnjbfe!" Barbie grabbed onto Selena's hand which was placed tightly over the blonde's mouth.

"She didn't mean it." Skipper's gaze turned to her and Selena felt herself slipping in her head. The Asian shooed away the urge to gulp and run away and gave him a small smile. "Sorry. We're leaving." She looked back at the other two. "We are leaving." Marlene and Kyle turned to her. "Now." Kyle rolled her eyes and stalked out of the room, followed by Marlene. "Sorry." Selena mumbled and walked backwards, bringing the livid Barbie with her.

Skipper stared at the closed door for a while before a beeping sound from his belt sounded. He looked down at the pager hooked onto his belt and then at the door.

"Boys," he turned and headed down the hallway, "we're needed."


	5. New

**Chapter 4: New**

"I can't believe he agreed to this." Andy Andrews shifted the strap of the bag he was carrying and trudged on. The British exchange student was on his way to school, to his first school ever, but he wasn't the least bit happy about it. Perhaps those stories about high school that his friends told him weren't that bad, not that he had more to think about, but his older brother didn't even think twice when Marlene practically demanded that the boy go to school after she found out the truth. Well, a friend of his, the only sane one around his age and neighborhood, was the one who did some digging into his past, but he was supposed to have a say in things, right? He should decide on what happens in his _private_ life, right? "Apparently not." Andy mumbled while pulling his jacket even closer around him to block out the early autumn wind when a voice called out to him.

"Private!" The boy winced and was in the middle of choosing between running away or staying when another boy ran up to him with a goofy smile. The newcomer had sandy brown hair, huge yellowish brown eyes and tanned skin. He wore slightly worn clothes that matched his stained baseball cap that had tuffs of hair sticking out the loop and dirtied shoes. His bag was none the worse and the entire sight of the boy made Private pity him, if not for the annoying attitude the boy had unluckily inherited from his childish uncle. "Hey Private!"

"Um, 'morning." Andy replied in a less happy tone, which did not come unnoticed by the unintelligent kid. "Do I know you?"

"Of course you do! You're Private!"

"No, I meant if you knew me," Andy shook his head, "I mean, if I knew you. And no I don't know you, not really."

"Well, yeah, you're Private!"

"Mort!" The boy hissed angrily, with his hand tightly clasped over the smaller one's mouth. Andy looked around and walked deep into an abandoned looking alleyway. "I thought we already told you about the identities." The boy just blinked his big yellow brown eyes at him. "The plan? The secret identities?" More blinking. "Nothing?" 'Andy' spoke in disbelief and dropped his hand. "Are you kidding me?"

"Nope. But Maurice did say something about not joking about the Penguins' other halves."

"Halves? Oh you mean the identities?"

Those big eyes blinked again. "What are identities?"

"Nevermind." Andy looked around again and pulled the boy closer, bringing his voice to a close whisper. "Just remember, if you see our real faces, it's not our real names. It's our fake names. And if you see our fake faces, we use our real names. And right now, I've got my real face on, so I'm Andy Andrews, you got it?" Mort nodded slowly and continuously for a while before Andy sighed. "You have no idea what I just said, do you?"

"Ohkay!" Mort piped before skipping away, whistling a happy tune.

"Great. Now I'm acting like Kowalski."

"Come on, Andy! We're going to school!" Andy's eyes couldn't grow any bigger at the statement.

"How did he, but I…Ah, forget it. There's no way I'm turning into a Kowalski." Andy hoisted his bag over his shoulder and followed the boy. "But wait…how did he know I was going to school?"

Zack Andrews hopped out the black van that his friends made from scrap metal, slammed the door and marched up the stone steps to the building labeled 'Police Station' in big, old-style letters. He walked past the onlookers, up the steps and in the room that occupied half of the second floor and was labeled 'Finders' Incorporated'. In this room were five tables and a door that led to what looked like a laboratory. Each table had its own distinct personality, depending on the owner except for the fifth table which was empty of anything but a trash can and a discarded pen. All of which he passed, with Blaine Chase, one of his partners in the delivery industry, at his heel. "Here's the folder, Mrs. Thelma." Zack threw a folder down on the desk next to the door with the only frosted glass window in the entire building and the woman behind it picked it up and flipped through it.

A smug grin started at Zack's lips, probably caught on from Blaine's own, when he remembered an event in the early morning but he held it down as a familiar man walked, no, stalked up to him. He was dressed in the complete blue police officer uniform and an ugly scowl directed at Zack, who stood straight and looked at the man with the same fierceness despite the height difference. "Officer X."

"Mister Andrews. You're late." It could've passed as a growl with the way he said his sentence but it didn't faze Zack one bit.

"Something came up, _sir_." It still disgusted Zack that he had to call one of his hated enemies his boss, but to actually give respect to someone who didn't return it? Even he had to agree to his younger brother's statement about giving people what they deserved.

The man crossed his arms, oozing the authority he knew he had.

"Let me guess, traffic?" The meaning behind that was clear to Zack. The officer didn't believe that Manhattan's fastest delivery team could be caught up in morning traffic.

"Yes, sir." Zack could see that the man resisted the urge to blurt out the possible things they could have done to allow time to elapse, and instead eyed the empty space behind Zack.

"Where are Jefferson and Junior?"

Zack glanced over at the two desks that belonged to the two men. "Obviously not here."

"Are you sassing me, mister?"

"No sir. I was about to say that the two are on a temporary leave."

"And who gave you permission to let them off?"

"That," Zack urged the grin that was coming up to go back down before X could see it, "would be me, X." X turned his attention to the big and even burlier man leaning against the desk. This guy was also dressed in a blue uniform, had thin white hair crowning his bald head and upper lip and his nameplate stated that he was 'Chief Jayson Rutherford'. Apparently from the slight opening in the door behind him, he had entered while the two were having a glare down.

"For what reason, Chief?" The bear of a man pushed himself off the desk with much grace and towered over X.

"For obvious reasons, like how a boy is still not in school even after years of arriving here. The boy will be getting a diploma and I'd like to be one of the reasons why."

"And what about Jefferson, sir?"

"He is also occupied with his own work. You don't have to concern yourself with any of the boys' problems. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Chief."

"Good. Now I need you to supervise over the McKinley case. McKinley's lawyer should be here any second."

"Yes, Chief." The man walked away without another word and Blaine let out the breath he had been holding. He had been standing quietly off to the side of Zack, eyeing X with much conviction until he locked the door behind the man.

"I'ot." Blaine mumbled and walked over to the table with overflowing papers, perched on the edge and started making a paper plane from one of the stacks. Chief Jayson Rutherford, or Jay, raised a brow at him and picked up the cup of steaming coffee from the table with a grin.

"He still on your case?"

Zack shook his head and glared at where X had gone to. "He still thinks we have a link to the Penguins."

"Sorry, but I can't do anything without alerting her, and you know I can't grant the sudden dismissal of a good recruit."

Zack gritted his teeth and crossed his arms. "Good recruit. The world really is a crazy place."

The folder that Zack had placed on the table earlier on was handed back to Zack, who took a look at it, and then at the woman whose manicured hand was holding the file. "I know you don't approve of this new recruit-"

"I think X's is a pain, but I don't think anybody'll listen to me, Mrs. Thelma."

Thelma just ignored him and continued. "I know you don't want another recruit, but this is a direct order from the doc. You have to take her, whether you like it or not."

"And I don't like it, so I won't take it." Zack pushed the folder away, but Thelma shook her head and pushed it back.

"It's her or your job, Skipper."

"She can't possibly-"

"I'm not one for jokes, Skipper. Take it or leave the badge."

Zack stared at Thelma, who stared back with indifference.

"Why is this newbie so important to her?"

"Do I look like Catriona Carmichael to you?" Thelma forced the folder into his grip and sat back down in her chair. "I don't know why, but she's my replacement."

"What?" The three men chorused in shock as the room went into a stand still. Zack and Blaine turned to Jay, who raised his hands in defense.

"Don't look at me like I should know. I didn't know that either." Jay turned to the aging lady. "What do you mean she's your replacement, Mrs. Thelma?"

"The doc is thinking of getting the expertise of one of her field agents into desk work, since she is pretty good in that area too."

Zack frowned in thought. "She's a spy?"

"You didn't read the file, did you?"

"Um…"

"Skipper, this is one of the reasons why you lack intellect on details. Crucial details are important."

"Yes ma'am, but-"

"No buts. You are taking this new recruit, whether you like it or not, because I am retiring."

"But-"

"Skipper. Just trust me on this. And I say that you can trust the girl."

"I have a problem with females." Thelma raised a brow at him, noting his dry tone. "They hate me. All of them."

"Then I guess that little fan club of yours was just make-believe."

"A fan club?" The man repeated incredulously and Blaine burst out in laughter, earning a glare from Zack. "You're kidding."

Thelma shook her head at him and sighed, adjusting her glasses a bit while peering at the folder. "She'll warm up to you. She has a likeable personality."

"Oh no she won't. Not after that incident with her cousin and one of my men."

"She doesn't have a choice on this either. She can agree to work with you and your team, or sacrifice ten years of hard work at the academy and field."

"Is she that good?"

"I don't think the boss would just allow anyone on your team, Skipper."

Zack licked his lips, looked back at Blaine, who was watching him and then back at the folder, before flipping it open. "I have one last request before you go. Get me a meeting with Barbie McHale today before the sun sets."


	6. Unfortunate

**Chapter 5: Unfortunate**

"Something is wrong?" Apparently the Madagascan boy inherited his uncle's bad grammar too, but the small smile on Andy's face knew that he was starving for some concern to his problems.

"Yeah…"

"You can tell me, Andy." Good thing Mort was a good listener. Most of the times.

"I'm not exactly looking forward to school." A few kids ran past the two and started shoving a few others into the lockers lining up each side of the hallway. "I think it's dumb to go to school. There's absolutely nothing related to fun over here. I mean, Skippah practically threw me out this morning just so I could get a head start. And if it's anything Kowalski said, it's boring."

"But it is fun! And I can be with you and be your friend!" Mort insisted with the goofy smile back on his face. "And if the teacher thinks you're good you get a star!" Andy shook his head with a small smile and gently guided the boy away from a bunch of taller boys who had a shaking nerd cornered.

"I think I'm too old for stickers, Mort."

"What are stickers?"

"Those things you were talking about?" The boy just stared at him. "The stars?"

"What stars? Are you talking about those twinkle things that live with the Sky Spirits?" Andy let out a sigh and shook his head, turning his attention to the locker that was now his.

"Nevermind." He played with the lock and the door easily sprung open. He was about to reach in and get the needed books when a familiar cry reached his ears. Peeking over his shoulder he was surprised to find Mort cornered, by the very boys they avoided just minutes ago. "They're quick." He closed the door and walked over to the crowd that had already surrounded the four boys.

"So what'd you got for us today, pal?" The one who spoke was admittedly larger than Andy and he had no qualms in taking the little boy's bag.

"My bag!" Mort reached out to grab the bag back, but he was shoved hard into the wall behind him, leaving him slightly dazed. "Ooh."

"Stop!" Everyone turned to the redhead whose green eyes were glowing with fury. "Leave him alone, Kevin!" The bigger boy scoffed and gave the girl a grin.

"And what are you going to do, sweetie?" He turned back to the whimpering Mort and looked through Mort's bag while his two equally huge, varsity posse took hold of each of the girl's arms.

"Hey! Let me go! Let ME go!"

"You really shouldn't be doing that."

Kevin let out a frustrated sigh and shoved the bag into Mort's chest, leaving the small boy slightly out of breath. "What now?" He turned to face the newcomer and his frustration turned into a full out grin. "Well, if it isn't a new victim."

"Yeah, hi to you too."

"Do you know who I am, kid?"

"Not really interested, but I'm all ears." Andy crossed his arms and nodded to the side, urging Mort to move. "However, I don't listen to dumbasses. Most especially those who pick on smaller boys and hurt girls." The Madagascan silently obliged and walked away as Kevin and his cronies glared at Andy.

"What did you just call me, twerp?"

"So you're deaf too?" A few giggles from the crowd and the redhead fueled Kevin's anger.

The boy grabbed Andy's shirt and pulled him forward, at the same time pulling his arm back.

"Alright, smart guy. You asked for it."

"I'm not asking. You're begging."

Kevin was about to swing when Andy ducked. The fist connected with one of the other boys and he held onto his mouth. Kevin blinked and looked on in shock while Andy got out of the other boy's grasp.

"Ow!" The boy who got hit exclaimed and stared at Kevin. "Dude!"

Kevin turned to Andy, who grinned at him. "How did you…nevermind. You're not going to survive this. Hold him down."

"Hey! Get off, you fools!" Andy looked at the two holding his arms before facing Kevin's incoming fist. "Oof!"

"What is wrong with you?" The girl had made her way back to them. "Stop it!"

"Move it!" Kevin roughly pushed her away and turned back to Andy.

"Ow!" Kyle cried out when her foot suddenly missed a step and the girl found herself falling. She reached for her foot and nursed it gently. "My ankle!"

"That's it." Andy easily pushed the two gorillas holding him away and charged at Kevin. The two dropped to the ground and it only took Kevin a second to recover before he aimed another punch at Andy, which the smaller boy dodged before giving his own.

"Boys, wait." Kyle got to her feet, wincing at the pain in her feet. "You have to stop fighting." Her pleas were ignored as Andy was pulled off Kevin and given a punch to the gut. The boy doubled over but managed to dodge another swing from the other boy. That's when Kevin grabbed Andy and kicked him over to Kyle.

"Chump, you're going down."

Andy got to his feet and glowered at him.

"I could say the same."

"Wait," Kyle hobbled between the two of them, arms outstretched, "wait!"

"Out of the way, Millender." Kevin grabbed onto Kyle and the action caused Andy to wrench his hands off the girl.

"Don't you dare touch her."

"I will do what I want with her, baby."

"Back off, gargantuan." Andy stepped before Kyle and pushed Kevin away, making him stumble toward his posse. All three fell to the ground in a heap and Andy turned to Kyle.

"Are you alright?"

"Um, yeah," Kyle moved her eyes to the pile of boys to Andy, "yeah, I'm fine."

"Miss Millender. Mister Andrews." Kyle froze and Andy gulped, both knowing who the gruff voice belong too. They turned around, coming face-to-face with the principal of the school.

_Oh no._

Andy put on a smile and tried not to show his fear at the man's overbearing stature. "Principal Spencer. Hi."

"Hi to you too, Mister Andrews." The man then turned to the redhead. "I expected better from you, Miss Millender."

"Principal Spencer, this is just a misunderstanding. You see-"

"And as for you, Mister." The man's gaze seemed to penetrate Andy's soul, and he didn't like it one bit. "Just because you're new doesn't mean you'll be let off like that. This isn't kindergarten, boy." _Exactly what Skippah said. But he specifically stressed the word 'boy'._

"But I didn't do-"

"I don't want to hear it."

"But they did that to themselves! You have to-"

"Office, now. Same goes for you, Miss Millender."

"Oh no. Sir, you have to listen, ow." The redhead paused and leaned against the hand holding onto the wall, pulling all her weight on her unhurt foot. Principal Spencer frowned at the girl, and Andy took that as a cue to take her hand and sling it over his shoulder.

"Are you alright, Miss Millender?"

"She sprained her ankle when he pushed her." Andy answered for her, carefully shifting her so that she was leaning on him. "I have to bring her to a clinic."

"Well, in that case, you're clear, Miss Millender. But you, Mister Andrews, I expect to see you in my office. I'm sure your brother would love to hear what happened today."

Andy suppressed a groan and looked down with a nod. "Of course, sir."

"Good." The principal turned back to Kevin and his friends. "You three. Straight to my office."

"But sir, he-"

"Now, Mister Dolando." The three took one look at the man before hurrying away. Andy looked after them before turning down the hallway with the redhead, ignoring the whispers and stares going his way.

* * *

"I'm doomed." Andy dropped his head into his hands. "He's going to kill me. And I'm gonna die."

"It's not the end of the world, dweeb." Kevin snarled at the boy, but was silenced by a look from Spencer. His companions, whose names were Michael De Guzman and Dig Bautista, were doing the same.

"I am not proud of what you four have done. And in front of the entire student body."

Kevin pointed at Andy. "It was his fault." Michael and Dig nodded mindlessly.

Andy got to his feet. "Hey, you started it!"

"No, you did!"

"Liar!"

Kevin rose up with fists by his sides. "How about Round 2, twerp?"

"Enough!" Spencer's rough voice boomed around the room, making the two sit down and stare at the carpet. "I-" He was interrupted by sharp knocks on the door. _Oh no. He's here. I'm doomed. _"Come in." The door opened and a lady walked in, head raised. Andy and the group of bullies stared in awe at the female who looked a bit like Barbie but in a biker chic-like attire.

"Selena," Spencer cleared his throat and raised his chin, "Miss Valentine. What are you doing here?"

"Hold it, Spence. So," Selena looked around with a stern look, "who's Andy?" Kevin, Michael and Dig pointed to Andy who shrunk back into the couch, wishing he was smaller. Possibly microscopic. "You Andy?"

"Yes." Selena eyed the boy for a while before turning to Spencer.

"I vouch for the kid."

"Excuse me?"

"PS," the kids' eyes widened at the nickname, "you can bet your car, house and job that this boy's innocent."

"He retaliated."

"It was in good defense. Are you telling me that fighting BACK is what the students shouldn't do? I thought that defending yourself is supposed to be part of the curriculum."

"Well, yes, but," Selena raised a brow at him, "we have strict rules on discipline, Miss Valentine."

"I didn't say he had to be completely off. I just want you to go easy on him."

"Fine. An hour detention. But if he gets into trouble again, I can't-"

"Don't think that will happen again, PS. Right, Andrews?" Selena looked back at Andy who stared at her before nodding with a huge smile.

"Yes, yes. It won't happen again, sir. I promise."

The principal gave him a nod before turning to the secretary. "Marissa." The lady looked up at the man.

"Yes sir?"

"I want you to cancel that call to Mr. Andrews."

"But, sir, I've already called him."

Andy's smile dropped drastically.

"Oh no no no. I am doomed."

"Hold on, drama boy." Selena raised a hand and frowned at Marissa. "What did you tell him?"

"To come to the school straightaway."

"Is that it?"

"Should there be anything else? I didn't want to give away anything, should he not come."

"Good." Selena put on a smile and placed a hand on Private. "We'll be waiting for him."

Spencer took a step away from them. "I'll just leave you two and deal with the other three." He walked over to the three and a minute later all four were in the office.

"We?" Selena turned to Andy.

"Do you want to get in trouble?"

The boy gestured around. "Already did?"

"With your brother?"

"He'll murder me. I know he will. I'm not supposed to be fighting."

"Good."

Andy stepped away from her in slight horror. "How is that good? I thought you were nice."

"Dude, chill. I didn't mean that. You trust me?"

"Kinda?"

"I'll take that."

* * *

Zack jumped out of the van and practically ran to the office. "Andy?" He stopped short when he saw his brother sitting outside, nursing an ice pack to his black eye. Zack marched up to him and demanded. "What is going on here? What happened?" The boy jumped up at the sight of him and looked up at the man. "How'd you get that eye?"

"Normally," the two turned to Selena as she came around the corner with a small smile, "I'd say it came with birth." Zack just stared at the woman, who sighed and crossed her arms, looking defeated. "I'm really sorry."

"For what?" Selena gave him another small smile and gestured to Andy.

"That."

"You did this?"

"It was an accident. I didn't mean it. I mean, I was really in a hurry to get to school and I did not see him coming."

"You were running blind?"

"Something like that." Selena giggled nervously and looked away. "Well, to be honest, I think it's because I really am blind? Well," she gestured to her glasses, "half blind." She giggled again and tucked a strand behind her ear. "I was waving to a friend and I did not see him, and well I'm really sorry."

"It's fine. As long as it wasn't too serious."

"I hope we didn't interrupt you or anything."

"Not really. But I do have to go now. I've got an important meeting coming up." Zack turned to Selena with a hand on Andy. "I can trust you with him, can't I?"

"After what happened?"

"If you're sincere enough to care about him, I think I can do that as payment."

"Well, if you insist."

"I do."

"Sure."

"Thank you." Zack turned to the boy with a smile and rubbed his hair. "See ya, squirt."

"See ya, BZ." Zack frowned at the name and then walked away with a wave.

Selena smiled after him while inching her way to Andy. "He gone?"

"Give it a minute. He's got senses like Superman." When they were sure that he was gone, "Awesome! We so fooled him! Up high!" Andy raised a hand which Selena happily slapped. "You were so awesome and…" His happy demeanor fell when he saw a tall man leaning against the wall with a grin behind Selena. "Uh…"

"Andy?" Selena looked at Andy before turning around. The man pushed himself off and walked up to them.

"Oh don't stop on my account. I was just checking on you."

"Uh…" The man moved from Andy to Selena, who was staring at him with a tilted head.

"Who's your new friend, Andy?"

Selena held out a hand to him with a smile. "Selena." The man took the hand and gave it a solid shake.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Valentine. I'm Edward Jefferson."

Selena blinked at him and let her hand drop to her side. "How did you know my last name?"

"You're my lab assistant. Intern, since you are a college student. You're earning for extra points, aren't you?"

"Yes, but wait, you're the new substitute science teacher?"

"Actually, I am the science teacher. I took a temporary leave for a while. Joseph Lieder, he's the substitute, took over for me while I was gone. How much has Joseph told you about me?"

"A lot?"

"Probably tall tales about me. Pun not intended."

Selena smiled and crossed her arms. "Of course not."

"Don't worry, I'm not harsh with grades."

"I'm sure you're not, Mister Jefferson. Joseph did say that you were a fun person to work with."

"Please, that would only be true if you actually enjoyed working in a stuffy room full of dangerous chemicals. And we're practically the same age, Selena. Call me Edward."

"Oh. Okay."

"I'm also a pretty nice person to be with."

"Yeah, me too, depending on what you mean by that."

A snort brought the attention of the adults to the boy, who had a disgusted look on his face.

"Yuck. You two are flirting."

Selena frowned and gently hit his back. "No we are not. We are having a friendly conversation."

Andy snorted again and rolled his eyes. "Try and convince me. I know what I'm seeing."

"Andy," the two turned to Edward, "do you have something you want to say?"

"I think I've already," Andy paused and looked up at Edward, who raised a brow at him, "yeah, yeah I do! I was gonna say that I am so glad you two are having a friendly conversation. Hey, who wants ice cream? Because I really want one. Ya know, summer and all that…"

"Sorry, but you're due for History," Edward peeked at his watch, "in five minutes."

"Oh man. I hate History."

"What?" Selena looked down at the boy. "How can you say such a thing?"

"Simple. I hate History." He sighed at her raised brow and crossed his arms defiantly. "We have to memorize all these dates and people and it is so long. There's so many of them. Not to mention that the whole thing is boring. Very boring."

"Dude. We wouldn't be here without History."

"I don't care."

"Well, if you need help, you can just come to me."

Andy shook his head and looked up at Selena with a smile.

"Okay, are you serious? This is like the second time already. I think I owe you too much."

"Nope. You saved Kyle."

"She just sprained an ankle. I'm not saying it's not painful or anything, it is. I know. I just-"Selena placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I get it. And I think you get my point too."

"In that case," Andy grabbed her hand and shook it with a huge smile, "thank you!" He then hugged the lady, who blinked in surprise before patting the boy uncomfortably. Andy moved to her ear and whispered. "Because Edward's real bad at teaching me those kinds of things, but he's good at exploding the lab. I think that's why he went on leave. Don't tell him I told you that." Selena bit down on a grin and nodded as the boy stood away with a similar expression.

"Okay, Andy," Edward frowned down at the two, unaware of the secret conversation between them, "we have to go. I don't want you to get in trouble with the hall monitors." Selena nodded and thumbed behind her.

"And I've got to go back. My break's long enough."

"Goodbye, Selena." Edward called before walking away, followed by Andy, who waved after her.

"See ya, Selena! Oh and tell Kyle to take care!" Selena saluted him with two fingers.

"Got it." She turned and walked away.

* * *

When they were finally sure that they were out of sight, Edward pulled Andy closer and whispered.

"I won't tell him about the fight if you won't tell him that I wasn't watching you."

"Yeah, could've avoided that if you were there."

"Do we have a deal or not?" The man hissed and Andy nodded.

"I don't think either of us wants to be running around NY fifty times."


	7. An Association For Association

**Chapter 6: An Association For Association**

"So, you new here?" Barbie ignored the man holding the punching bag before her and concentrated on the bag itself before delivering a good hard punch to it. She'd been waiting for her suspension to come to an end, and by that, it would mean that she either had a new mission or a new team. Whatever the case, the SPA was taking longer than required to send her a message.

SPA, better known as the Specialized Protection Agency. She'd been working for this agency since college. Selena wouldn't approve of this life threatening job as an SPA agent, specifically an RE (Reserved for Emergency), not that Sel knew. All she knew was that Barbie does computer work for an online company, and though the assignments were far from many, the pay was excellent, so Selena never questioned.

However, the suspicion was back when Barbie failed to hand over the money she promised to pay their old apartment and they were forced by Jay to move to New York, since the man hadn't seen them since they flew from the nest in New Jersey after their high school graduation. And try as she might, the agency appeared inactive every time she tried to contact it, and none of her mails were answered. _Obviously_, Barbie inwardly rolled her eyes,_ they're thinking about giving me the cold hand. And after all I've done for the country. I was raised here since I was born. I should be given credit._ Another punch to the bag and she shook her head. _But_ _I'm one of their best. I can't be let down now. I've been trained, tested, and whatever that stupid agency threw at me. I'm not giving up now. It's time I put that patience of mine to the test. I'm sure they're just looking for something suitable. _Barbie gritted her teeth and stepped back, reeling herself for a full roundhouse double twist kick. Her specialty.

Practicing in the hotel's gym was one way to keep her fit and healthy, both physically and mentally. The hotel belonged to Julien Jacobs, big surprise, but at least he allowed outsiders to use any of the facilities in the building. And the gym was one of the best, at least for Barbie since she didn't have to worry about competition. The hotel was only so newly built. But the one reason she was using the gym was because of Selena. Her Asian sister (true, Barbie is Selena's cousin, but Ms. Clarice Valentine decide to adopt her sister's only daughter after a drunken car accident killed both parents) was residing in the building, even though she was paying for half of the apartment rent. The lady was truly mysterious and incomprehensible, but she had her reasons. Reasons she didn't want to share either. All Barbie knew was that Selena was using her waitress/bartender job at Julien's diner/club as payment for the hotel room she was staying in. She also knew that Selena refused to stay in the penthouse area even though Julien was practically giving it to her for free. Also, Jay told her to watch over the Asian. In other words, spy on your older sister and make sure she isn't in or up to trouble. Barbie snorted at the thought and shook her head before getting in position for the full roundhouse double twist kick. Not that her sister was the troublemaking sort. She just had a penchant for getting into trouble at the wrong times or places.

Barbie perfected the move with precision and landed in a kneeling position facing away from the bag, leaving the man holding the bag in shock. A low whistle caught her attention and she looked up. Her eyes connected with a pair of navy blue eyes from across the room. _If it ain't the team players. _Barbie crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the four men, well, three men and a teenager, as they made their way over to her.

"You looking for something?"

"You." Skipper, was it? That guy, how he can look like a boss even with his extreme shortness. He's no dwarf though, far from it. And from the rumors, I think he's the most liked amongst the four. As far as fans go. _I don't get what's so great with him. The other guy's way better looking. Quiet, with a hint of danger, my kind of guy…Valentine, don't even go there. You know what happened last time. And I mean really. Same kind of guy, Las Vegas, one night. That was all it took to change my whole life._

"Cheesy line."

"This is business, McHale."

"I'm busy." She turned back to the bag, getting into a defensive position. "Get lost."

"We need to talk to you."

"Busy." She murmured under her breath and sent another punch to the bag.

"McHale."

"Give me a," Barbie turned her head quickly when the man called her name and her perfectly aimed punch moved to the face of the man holding the bag. He dropped to the ground in a heap and Barbie rose to her height with a smirk while Rico let out another low whistle. "Yeah, actually I do come here often. Can't you tell?"

Skipper shook his head as he stared at the unconscious man on the mat.

"You shouldn't have done that. We could've found a private room to discuss this matter with." The man dryly commented and Barbie took off the gloves and held up a finger.

"Point one, he'll be fine. Just bruised. My excuse is that I missed and 'accidently' punched his face. Point two, aside from him, we're the only ones here in this place. The owner trusts me enough to let his partner stay with me. Point three, I don't really care what happens. I can take care of myself."

Skipper folded his arms and carefully watched her.

"So they say."

"Pardon?"

"Just to be clear, you are Callie McHale, maiden name California Raven Jade Valentine, nicknamed Barbie?"

"Just because I'm named after a gem doesn't mean you can treat me like a delicacy. I demand for the purpose of your disturbance."

"McHale," Barbie turned to Kowalski, "do you think you can shush that big mouth of yours for a while?"

"I thought you were the one who talked big in school?"

"I'm not taking that insult."

"Hey, it's no present. You don't have to accept it. You just have to know it hit you."

"I don't accept gifts from people like you."

"Do you want Round 2, Bennett? Or was that 12? I lost count."

"This isn't high school, McHale. And you know I can't hit you. You're a female who isn't threatening to kill me. And Selena'll kill me if she found out."

"Huh. Wait a minute. What'd you just call my sis?"

"Valentine." Came the nonchalant reply.

"No, you didn't. You-"

"Enough." Kowalski dismissed her with a frown. "Skipper's got a proposition for you."

Barbie faced Skipper, her curiosity getting the best of her. "What kind?"

"Ever heard of Penguins, McHale? And I'm not talking about the cute and cuddly kind."

The blonde warily eyed him. "Why?"

"Agent McHale," she froze at the reference, "meet your new captain and teammates."

"Excuse me?" She looked from Skipper, to Kowalski, to Rico, to Private, and back to Skipper. "Are you telling me the agency set me up with NY's black ops? The elite? The Penguins?"

"We're not just NY's favorite." Private chirped proudly at the lady. "It's the whole world."

"And I'm supposed to believe that you four make up Penguins? Just, the four of you?" Skipper raised a brow at her.

"You got a problem with that, soldier?"

"None, sir, but isn't the job-"

"McHale, we're a highly trained military group. And apparently, your expertise is a great asset to this team."

"Do I have a choice?"

"Yes. Retirement, or this."

"I'm not giving up because of a bunch of males. No offense, sir. And, of course, I'm forgiven of past hostilities?" She sheepishly grinned at the man, remembering the 'hostilities' she was talking about. Calling your boss 'short' was just not good. Most especially if you're dealing with a black op SPA Agent leader. Those people were hardcore trainers, period. And it looks like even the Penguin leader' little brother wasn't spared, if his body was any mention. He looked great for a…teenager.

"I'll just ignore that and not put insolence on your file." Barbie gave him a grin and saluted the man.

"You can count on the opposite, sir."

Skipper returned the salute and Barbie dropped her hand. "Welcome to the team, McHale." Skipper plucked the pager from his belt and prepared to switch it on as he turned to Kowalski. "Debrief my cadet, Bennett. Yes, Chief?" He walked away with the pager to his mouth. Barbie looked after him in slight disbelief and pointed after him with a glance toward Kowalski, who had the same look of disbelief.

"Does he not have a cell phone?"

Kowalski put on a serious look and turned to the blonde. "He does, but he doesn't trust the device. I believe he thinks that the government's got a brainwashing sequence going on with the lines."

"Unbelievably retro. Is he always like this?"

"Paranoid? Yes. Out of date? Never. Take note, McHale. Skipper should never be out of date. He'll get extra paranoid when it comes to the unknown, and we really don't want that."

"Okay. Interesting boss. Guess the rumors weren't so far off. Missions will be different, but obviously not lacking fun."

"Mostly field missions, but desk work is part of the deal."

"I'm going to be the secretary?" Barbie shrugged. "I'm okay with that. That's most of what I've been doing since I joined the SPA. I specialize more on tech work than field work. Computers are my thing."

"And by thing you mean hacking into the Pentagon?" The blonde didn't answer him and just stared off to the side. "Yes, McHale, we know about it. We're supposed to. It's in your file." The female turned back to him, indifferent.

"Of course it is. SPA doesn't let anything get by them. Those people are strict recorders of everything. My ability to hack into the Pentagon was why I was offered a job at SPA as a computer specialist, than an actual agent."

"Precisely why you were recommended. Well, placed is more like it. You already had the spot before either side could say anything."

"Yeah, that's just how the agency works. You just have to go with it. One question." Kowalski nodded at Barbie to continue. "Why are we talking like this is completely normal? I mean, the walls do have ears, you know."

"True. The place is bugged. But by us. All of Jacobs' buildings are. We do most of our meetings in his buildings."

"Oh right. You guys work for Jacobs, don't you?"

Kowalski's mouth curled in distaste and the tall man shook his head.

"We don't work for him, we work with him. And if you ask Skipper, he's just going to tell you that the self-conceit works for us."

Barbie grinned and crossed her arms, shifting her weight to the other foot. The message of the statement was clear to her, but she wasn't one to judge someone she hasn't met yet. "Sounds like you've met the guy. How charming is he?"

"We're just in charge of keeping his overinflated head and, in his words, 'fabulicious booty'," Kowalski emphasized the word with air quotes and an eye roll, "from being murdered by others. Not that anybody's tried so far after Clemson." Clemson was a story to tell. A fellow rock star from the same country Julien came from with the aspirations of being the famous one. Too bad Julien struck first, and though Clemson has tried to get rid of him many times so that he could be top, the Madagascan king had luck on his side. Luck and the Penguins. Not that the 'king' was willing to admit it. His manager, composer and best friend, Maurice Richards, though, was much more polite.

"A babysitting job, huh?" Barbie grinned. It wasn't everyday you were told that an elite team of crime fighters were taking care of an heir. "Nice."

"No, it's not nice." Barbie turned to Private, who had finally spoke up, apparently not liking the idea of taking care of the 'royal' either. "He keeps bossing us around, telling us what and what not to do. And he always crosses the lines we set out for him. Always. Don't ask Skippah about it. I fear he'll send the entire team into a lap around the bay."

"Really?"

Rico nodded with a grim frown and looked up at her.

"Rea'ly." It was the second time they've made eye contact today, but that didn't stop the strange yet comforting chill running through Barbie. Or the slight blush on either as they turned their attention to Skipper. _Don't, Callie…_

"Boys," Skipper briefly glanced at Barbie as he made his way back to the four, "and girl, we're needed. Downtown. Jun Callaway's got another car." Barbie blinked at him and dropped her arms to her sides.

"What? Now?"

"Yes, now. Do you want to have some tea before leaving, McHale?"

"Just because I'm named after a doll, doesn't mean I'm the tea party kind of girl."

"Good, coz I ain't waiting for that to happen. Leave the unconscious man. He'll be fine." He turned and hurried out the doors of the gym.

The four stared after him before following him up the stairs to the front lobby. The gym was located in the basement of the hotel and soon enough, they were walking past the front desk and across the carpeted lobby to the revolving doors. Private moved closer to Kowalski and whispered. "He's awfully pushy nowadays, doncha think, 'Walski?"

"You're telling me. He's never called me Bennett ever since he trusted me enough to be his best friend. I think it's because of Dr.-"

"Boys." The three males immediately retained a 2 feet radius from each other, keeping straight faces while Barbie stared in wonder.

"Whoa. That IS trained."

"Welcome to the big leagues, McHale."

"Don't call me that. I'm not married anymore. The name's either Valentine, or Barbie."

Skipper glanced at her for a while before shaking his head. "I'll call you what I want. You okay with that?"

"Yes sir." Barbie increased her pace and reached the swinging front doors of the lobby before they did.

"Barbie, wait-" Barbie ignored him and roughly pushed the swinging doors. A loud smacking sound was heard followed by a familiar cry, which made Barbie jumped back.

"Oh my gawd." Barbie gasped in shock as Selena attempted to dislodge her hand from between one of the doors and the wall.

"CALLIE!" Selena screamed, alerting the early occupants of the hotel lobby, and continued tugging at her hand using her other. "Oh gawd, seriously?! I'm gonna-" Before anybody could do or say anything to calm Selena, said female's hand flew from its hold and she stumbled back into the door behind her, sending the doors swinging around with her in it. Barbie sidestepped quickly, barely missing the Asian when she flew out. Instead, she bumped into Kowalski and sent both of them falling. Kowalski fell on his back, grateful for the soft carpeting, and not so grateful for the added weight that dropped on him.

"Ow…" The two groaned and Selena rolled over him and dropped to the ground, face down.

"That was so stupid…I can't believe that just happened."

Kowalski raised his head a bit to glare at her. "You're stupid. Did you think that trying to push through before Barbie could was going to work? And what is up with that? Is there some kind of competition between the two of you? You're not blind, and you damn know well that Barbie's faster and stronger than you." Kowalski muttered angrily and dropped his other arm over his head. "We really have got to stop meeting up like this. You're going to kill me." He leaned back on the carpet and closed his eyes. "My brain hurts."

"Okay. Do you need a kiss on that too? Yes, I'm fine too. Thank you for asking. Do you need a hand? I'd gladly help."

Kowalski popped an eye open and slowly turned to Selena. "You know, this is why nobody wanted to be friends with you. You are so…"

"So what?" Selena harshly demanded, glaring at the man. "What? I'm so what?" She grabbed the man's shirt and pulled him as close possible while she sat on her feet. "Answer me."

Undeterred but a little shocked at her attitude the man replied as coolly as he could, hoping it would help calm her down. "You talk to yourself." It did, somewhat. She let go of him and gave out an unladylike snort.

"Of course I do. There's usually nobody to talk to. Right?" She hissed down at him and got to her feet, dusting herself off. "Nobody wants to be friends with a freak." Kowalski sat up with wide eyes.

"That's not-" She crossed her arms and glowered at him.

"I seriously don't need your pity. Or your sympathy. Or your lies. I'm not stupid."

"I didn't say that." But those words could be countered with the ones he said just a minute ago. Nevertheless, he got to his feet. "Well I just did, but it was out of anger and you know it. I did not mean it."

"Why don't you call the mental hospital, Kowalski? No, wait, the asylum's better. They've got real nurses and doctors interested in experimenting on the crazy people. And strait jackets to keep them from attacked anyone. Nobody would care what would happen to them." Her tone had gone even harsher, with sarcasm thickly oozing out of it. "I know you'll take real glee in sending me there. Tell the whole world what I am while you're at it. Tell the whole freaking world."

"I'm not that kind of person. And I think you're too sleep deprived. What time did you go to sleep last night?"

"No?" Her frown had turned into a snarl now. She had ignored the sleep question and it was clear she didn't want to talk about it, possibly because there may be some truth in it.

"Okay, stop. I didn't mean it, I take it back and we're friends again."

"Friends my foot. First time you saw me again you wanted to throw me into the fountain. Fixing my glasses was just something to do to keep me away."

"I'm trying to start over here. And I said I'm sorry. How many times do I have to say it? Why can't you get over it?"

"I get that you almost died three times because of the bastard you call a father." Kowalski shifted on the spot and Selena raised her arms over her face with a startled gasp.

"Selena." The female blinked and abruptly dropped her arms, the red of embarrassment clear on her face. Kowalski stared at her wide eyed as the female stumbled over her own feet for her escape and dropped back to the ground. Her hair, though still wet from a recent shower, was dry enough to hide her face. The Neanderthal knelt beside her, gently placing his hands on her arms and feeling her tense up. "Selena, you told me I wasn't like him. And I'm not, okay? I would never, ever hurt you like he did to me. Jay or no Jay." The swift flow of wind that came to them indicated that somebody had entered through the doors.

"Do you think you could hurry the party and get your doggy bags, 'coz Callaway's getting far far away." Jay's stern voice came clear over to Kowalski and Selena, who froze up in fear. "Kowalski, what are you doing?" Kowalski gently and discreetly pulled Selena down and closer to him. Thankfully he didn't leave his overcoat in the van, or Jay would've immediately spotted Selena. There would be a lot of questions behind that and neither of the two was willing to answer. Another good fact was that Selena was nearly one foot shorter than his six foot six. Hiding her was a piece of cake. Kowalski cleared his throat and turned his head as much as he could to see Jay staring at him intently.

"Just picking up a few things, Jay. They fell from my pocket in our hurry." Kowalski turned back to the ground and 'picked' at the fibers of the carpet before rising, slowly enough so that Selena could do the same and fast enough that Jay wouldn't be suspicious. "Okay," he pocketed the 'fallen items' without turning, "all set." Jay nodded and took out his cell phone.

"Go ahead. I have to go check on Selena first." Kowalski's head shot up in his direction along with his body, not that Jay noticed as he was concerned with the screen of his phone. "She isn't answering her phone."

Selena cursed silently and then held down the urge to giggle and jump in joy when her phone vibrated in the back pocket of her jeans.

"Hum." Jay stared at the phone, pocketed it and headed for the elevators. Kowalski pushed Selena's right arm, urging her to go the other side. Selena edged around Kowalski to his front. The man grabbed her arm and pulled her along as he briskly walked to the front doors, the others in tow. "Oh, Fire!" The relief in Jay's voice was unmistakable as a baby Siberian husky leaped over the carpeting and landed feet away from the officer. Fire, was as mentioned, a baby Siberian husky who was saved by Marlene on one of her veterinarian trips and given to Selena as a birthday gift. Selena prided herself in the puppy since he was very well trained by both females, not just in potty but in doing everyday things like opening a door or surprisingly, getting a jug of juice for guests. The puppy was completely adorable, smart and spoiled by Selena.

"Oh shoot." Selena murmured and stopped short, causing Kowalski to do the same. "He escaped again." She watched as Jay dropped to one knee and regarded the seated puppy.

"You going to Selena, pup?" In response, the puppy got all fours and barked once happily. "Oh great. Lead me to her."

"Shoot shoot shoot." Selena dropped to her knees and peeked around Kowalski, shaking her head and hands vigorously at the puppy as Jay got to his feet. The puppy tilted its head at her, the confusion clear on its face. Jay saw the dog staring at something behind him and turned around. Selena moved back behind Kowalski, hoping that Jay didn't see her. At that moment, the puppy started yapping excitedly and jumping about in a cute circle. Jay turned his attention back to the animal, who turned in the opposite direction as the front doors and trotted away. Jay followed without a word and soon they were at the elevators.

Not waiting for another chance at being exposed, Kowalski pulled Selena outside and joined the others on the sidewalk. "Oh thank you, baby. I am so going to give you a steak when I get back. A big juicy one with barbeque sauce."

"How about me?" Selena turned to Kowalski, who had on a sheepish grin. "I helped you escape the clutches of the overprotective stepfather too." Selena playfully nudged him with a grin and a nod.

"Blueberry chocolatte frappe. Tomorrow. I have to go pick fresh blueberries first and ground the grains."

"Don't forget some homemade dark Belgians. Guardian won't be able to eat that."

"Yeah, sure. I'll have a whole box with your name on it. Now shoo. You're supposed to be gone."

"Aye, ma'am." Kowalski jokingly saluted her and climbed into the van. Selena scrunched her nose at him, though a small smile peeked out the corners of her mouth. She watched the van drive off before heading to her motorcycle. There was no way she could go back to her room. Jay was going to be there and hopefully, he and Fire would have the sense to just check up on her later. And she was already late for work. For the part time secretary job she managed to snag from an old friend. They weren't close, so hopefully the boss was going to be nice and let her pay with overtime.


	8. Continuous

**Chapter 7: Continuous**

Jay perched himself on the desk after throwing a folder on the furniture and glared at the five before him. "You four are lucky it was just Callaway." He directed his attention on the sole female, Barbie. "And you're even luckier that yesterday was just your first day. Or else you would be fired."

Sitting around didn't feel nice to Skipper. He was just as antsy to get Jun Callaway as Jay, but it really wasn't their fault Callaway got away. They were already too late when they finally found his trail. The guy was suddenly gone. Nobody knew where the car or man had gone. And in reality, it was Kowalski's fault. Skipper still didn't get the big deal in keeping the whole 'meeting' between his lieutenant and the Asian a secret, even after Kowalski explained that Selena wasn't supposed to be friends with him and vice versa. But it was clear that they already were and if not, he trusted his gut that they would be eventually. It's not like Jay was going to kill them for having mutual interests in each other. No, Jay wasn't going to kill Kowalski. Skipper was. Starting with morning laps in the pool before winter completely turned it into a mini skating rink.

"Chief," Skipper started as he got to his feet, "we-"

"I know you'll get him, but my problem with you five is how you could miss someone as insignificant as a car thief. A car thief!"

"We are talking about Callaway here…" If the uncertainty was missed in Skipper's tone, it was clear on his face. Jay raised a brow at him, keeping his eyes on the man, who refused to back down either. "He is a little sneaky at times, Sir, seeing as he is one of the Rats…"

"So you let him get away just because he's a Rat?" The harsh statement hit home and Skipper kept the need to wince at bay.

"No, sir. We were preoccupied."

"With what?"

"Classified." This was one answer Skipper knew Jay would let slip by without question so that was what he used. Jay stared at the man a little longer before sighing and dropping his arms to his sides.

"Fine." Don't sigh, Skipper. "I won't ask. And I know you'll get Callaway, sooner or later. It's also hard to get along with usual procedures if you have a newbie, so I won't press on it." Note to self, murder Kowalski. "I'm sorry about the slight temper. It's just…" Jay trailed off and frowned at the group.

"Sir?"

"It's just X, Skipper. He's been riding up on me lately. Bashing you four horribly on your job and missions."

"He's been spying on us."

"I know. It surprises me he hasn't found out about the dual façade yet. Surely he would have seen your alter egos."

"He suspects, I'm sure. Zack can testify to that. Even though Zack works as a delivery boy, he seems to be concentrated on his comings and goings here. It's like he knows Zack is one of us. I won't be surprised if he pinpoints it at me."

"It's just a suspicion. Or else Langston would've revealed you four by now." Skipper remembered Barry Langston, tabloid writer. It didn't seem that long ago when the four had a run in with the ex-convict. Lucky for them, Private managed to convince the man to work with them as a tabloid writer to a newspaper instead of selling drugs and poison to people on the black market, with the slight threat of letting Barry rot in jail forever, that is. Now the man was really poisonous. One wrong move and he could have your life and all your dirty secrets written down and ruined. "You need to be more careful around the man, Skipper. He's pretty vigilant for an animal catcher."

"No, X knows, Jay. There's no faking it. He's just trying to find a weak spot on us. He finds it, he threatens Barry and we're dead. Every single enemy we know would be after our asses. Even with the additional recruit, I don't think there'll be enough pieces to go around."

"Skipper…" Jay shook his head and sighed tiredly. "How's Jacobs then?"

"I'd rather have someone stick a gun up my ass than follow that idiot around again." Private giggled at the statement and Jay rolled his eyes. "He already has bodyguards, mainly the unreliable but trustworthy Bada and Bing. And he's moping about something I don't care about."

"And I'm guessing that you never asked?"

"Should I be concerned about the guy's feelings? I thought we were protecting his hide, not his heart."

"I'll just let that slide, knowing you." Skipper frowned at that. "And Julien is part of the deal. The guy helps keep you undercover. If it wasn't for him, one of your enemies would have your dead hide hanging on his wall for the world to see."

"It'll be so much better to get rid of both X and Jacobs. Nobody would care."

"Except," Kowalski spoke with a bored look, he's already heard this conversation thousand other times, "that Jacobs is a famous rock star, owns a sixteenth of Manhattan's buildings and has a whole island in Europe worshipping him which would explain his title as 'King of Madagascar'."

Skipper sent him a glare that said 'whose side are you on?' and 'you'll pay, Kowalski, you'll pay'.

"This argument always goes nowhere, Skipper. Would you just drop it? It's clear that Jay doesn't want to let X go or assign the babysitting job to someone else."

Jay sighed and leaned back, eyeing Skipper.

"I guess I can let the ba," Jay shook his head off the word and frowned, "bodyguard mission go." This seemed to lessen a worry line on Skipper's forehead and the others. "Just be careful, Skipper. X seems to be on a short fuse lately."

"Since when is he never? Um, sir." Skipper added quickly when Jay raised a brow. "That's how the demented ex-animal control officer works. And I really don't feel safe keeping him among the residents. He's dangerous not just to me and my team but the whole of New York. How far can you trust someone like him? I know he was pretty good at his old job, but seriously, I just think he pledged to protect New York with the sole purpose of catching Skipper, Kowalski, Rico and Private in a mission. Just to get his revenge on us for taking away his job for," Skipper snapped his fingers at Kowalski.

"Five times." Skipper snapped his fingers at the man again and gave Jay a look.

"I know, Skipper, and I should be sorry, but I'm not. It's not like you get your missions here anyway. We don't have the pagers for display. Besides, giving him something to do and rules to abide will keep him busy, out of trouble and away from public eye. And I have Franklin and Myatt watching over him this time. He couldn't possibly try to get you in jail. Again."

"Oh yeah. Like we haven't seen that a couple of times."

"But you managed to escape without me having to arrest your butts permanently." Jay pointed out.

"You're very reassuring, Sir. Guess we didn't need to sign up for our life insurances."

"Just doing my job. The Penguins are still considered nuisances, even if they save and protect more than the public knows."

"Most missions are done at night, J-Sir. I don't think your precious public cares because they're all asleep in their little beds."

"It's not my fault people think that you people started this. I mean, you go sneak off at ungodly hours, you're not NYPD and you barge in uninvited, just like normal criminals." Jay sighed deeply and went around the desk to his chair, making himself comfortable on it before speaking again. "I should apologize for putting my anger on you five earlier on. Selena just wasn't acting…okay, yesterday. It didn't seem to set right with me."

Barbie's eyebrows creased in concern and worry and the lady carefully watched Jay. "What do you mean?"

"What the girl usually does when she's thinking about something. The not normal ones."

"The day's coming up. Maybe it's because of that."

"Maybe…" Jay rubbed the back of his head and sighed again, the signs of fatigue clear on his face. "If Guetta calls later today, or tomorrow, direct him to this phone." He pointed to the telephone on his desk and picked up a notepad, looking at the letters on the top paper. "Don't answer it."

"I know they're treating her, dad." Jay didn't flinch or correct her, since she was, under the law, his daughter. After marrying Clarice Valentine, he adopted both Selena and Barbie. He had been their guardian every since the woman's death but was glad that Selena had met Marlene soon after graduation, because there was just some things a dad couldn't do with his daughters. Like leaving two girls out into the world without knowing what to do. It was completely safe in the office though, since there were no bugs and the whole room was soundproof.

"Um, yeah. Treating her."

"Dad?"

He looked up at her with a raised brow and lowered the notepad. "Yes?"

"Why the unsure tone? What are they doing to her?"

"She's not getting treatment."

"Wait, what? Why? And when?"

"She stopped a long time ago. The chemicals were damaging her brain cells. Anymore and she'll be stuck with a toddler's brain. I can't even handle her now, how am I supposed to handle her if she goes back in time? You are already a handful."

"But she NEEDS to be normal. What are you planning on doing with her?"

"Therapy. Remember, Guetta's calls go through this phone, not my cell."

"That's it? Therapy? That's all you can come up with?"

"What do you expect me to do, Callie? Wait, don't tell me. Because I don't care." Jay slapped hand on the table, got to his feet and pointed a finger at her. "What I expected you to do is your job. Because if you did that in the first place, you would've helped your sister by finding the institution and shutting it down. Have you done that yet?"

Barbie took a step back and bowed her head.

"No."

"Do you think she'll go back to normal when she knows that kids everywhere are still being kidnapped and treated like animals? That they'll go through what she has gone through for twice in her life?"

"No, sir. Sorry, sir."

Jay searched Barbie's face as the blonde stared back at him solemnly, the regret and sorrow written all over her face. "You know what?" He threw his arms up and dropped back down on the chair. "Forget the rules. Forget the pledge. I'll take full responsibility if you get found out again. I want you to hack the Pentagon mainframe. CSI, FBI, every single agency listed in the SPA. Check them all out. Find out what they've got on Blowhole's whereabouts."

Kowalski frowned at Barbie as the lady hurried out to grab her beloved laptop. He turned to Jay and asked. "Why Blowhole? Why now actually?"

"Because Blowhole's the one who has the formula. The one that made Selena forget certain snippets of her past. I'm not sure if he created it, but he has it. And he probably has the antidote too." Barbie returned with the device and placed it on the table, her fingers immediately flying over the keyboard while her eyes surveyed the screen. "Therapy's not cutting it and I want my daughter back. Callie? Anything?" Barbie leaned on her arms, bowed her head and shook it.

"Nothing." She sighed and used a hand to type. "Absolutely nothing. The guy's good. So good that he doesn't even exist on the cyber map."

"Well, he's definitely not dead. I'm sure of it. He must be hiding."

Skipper shook his head and walked over to the table. "That's what Jackford said. But he can't be hiding. I just don't get it. Why would the man hide? He's as big as the agency itself. Why would he hide? And from what?"

"Maybe," Kowalski started and looked over to them as he pushed himself off the wall, "he's not hiding himself, but something? We just recently found out about this Underground thing and how Blowhole's related to it. Maybe he's got something the other mobsters want."

"O' sumwon. (Or someone.)" Rico added as he joined Barbie, who was still typing away at the laptop.

Private pointed at the man. "Rico's got a point too. The doc could be hiding someone important to the Underground, or elsewhere. Or maybe someone he loves."

"The man's got a loved one on the line?" Skipper scoffed at the thought. "Ridiculous. Only person he's got is Doris, and she's been in hiding for a long time. Nobody knows where she is. Not even Kowalski." After Blowhole's last battle against humanity with his newfound crime partner Parker, Kowalski and Doris had hit it off again, but they broke it off soon after and went their separate ways. With Kowalski going back as the scientist-slash-options guy of the team and Doris to wherever her brother Francis, who is Blowhole, was.

"You don't know, Skipper." Jay turned from the leader to Barbie and tapped the laptop. "Why don't you look up on Doris?"

"I am, but there's also nothing. She's off the dot, like her brother. Wait, wasn't Sel Doris' best friend? Maybe she-"

"No." The blonde and the rest of the team looked up at the man in surprise. Jay shook his head with a stern look. "Don't look her up."

"But-"

"That's an order, Callie. Don't ever look her up. There are pictures of her from when she was in the institution and I don't want anyone seeing them as they are programmed to be downloaded into whatever device is viewing them. It's a virus made by the institution the intention of which was to send a spider into the mainframe of whatever the device is connected to. And the only information about Selena in there is about her in, before and after the institution. Her private and personal files have also been erased, so there's no need to search her up."

Barbie licked her lips and nodded, turning her attention back to the screen. "Yes sir."

Private shrugged like the bored looking teenager he was and held back a yawn before anyone could see it. They had been in this office since before sunrise and they hadn't even taken breakfast yet. And as much as he knew the team would love to go grab a bite, he had to know what their next move was. He didn't like to be kept in the dark like Skipper and preferred to at least have a know in their missions, dangerous as the fact might be.

"Oh well. Dead end. What next?"

Jay raised a brow at the boy and looked over at the rest before any of them could speak.

"You don't have to do this. This mission isn't even considered a priority or certified by SPA. It's more like a want than a need."

Skipper placed a hand on the man's shoulder as Barbie closed the laptop and hugged it to her chest. "And we've done missions on our own too, sir. This one won't be a problem. Besides, Selena's connected to the Underground problem we're having. It's best to work from all angles."

"If that's your decision, Skipper."

"It is. We'll gladly take on this."

"Then you're dismissed, agents." The entire team saluted the man, who saluted back, before trooping out of the room. When Private closed the door behind him, Skipper whirled about and glared at Kowalski, who was right behind him.

"You," Skipper narrowed his eyes at Kowalski while his hand curled on the taller man's neatly pressed shirt, "are doing a hundred laps in the pool when we get back. Do you hear me?" He hissed and stormed back to his table.

"What for?" Skipper threw a file he had taken from a pile at Kowalski, who caught the file as papers flew into the air. "I mean, yes sir." He went to pat the creases on his shirt and picked up the fallen papers. Skipper turned his scowl to Barbie, Private and Rico.

"Get back to work. We'll finish up this week's paperwork then go get something to eat." The three scrambled back to their tables and proceeded on the papers on their desks.


	9. Clarity

**Chapter 8: Clarify**

"Okay, okay." Marlene took in a deep breath and raised her head. "I can do this." _I can so do this. Just swallow your pride, Sullivan. You do not want these guys on your back after all you've heard. _She let out a breath, her hand raised to knock on the wood before her. Her other hand held up the base of the box of brownies she had made. Her brownies were one of her best creations, especially since the chocolate bits were a favorite among her friends back then. She loved baking. She loved it as much as she loved caring for and saving animals. Both were her passions. But her father was quite strict on things like these and he thought that being a veterinarian was a much better and more professional job then a cook. Even after explaining that cooking was an actual professional job and that she just wanted to follow her mother's dream of opening a cafe, she was sent off to learn about animal anatomies. She could understand why her father would want the best for her, since she was his only daughter amongst 5 brothers, but not why he didn't want her following in her mother's footsteps. Her hand dropped at the memory and she sighed. "Oh dad."

"Marlene?" The Californian turned to Selena, who was staring at her intently, and with those huge glasses of hers, it made her look like a bug. Not that she thought her long-time best friend disgusting and annoying like a bug, she just remembered the times she liked to 'bug' people. A smile started to form at the lame pun, but she chased it away when Selena took off her glasses and hooked it on her shirt.

"What are you doing? Put them back on."

"I don't need them."

"Yes you do. Put them on."

Selena rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, her tone firm. "Girl, I do not think those boys are gonna be fifty feet away. I don't need my glasses to see them." Marlene shook her head and turned back to the door. If she wasn't insecure or afraid of everything, Selena could be a dictator. Her intelligence and wit made her perfect for the job, aside from the fact that she likes to order people around. Her easygoing and kind nature did make her easy to be with and that was what scared Marlene most. The girl, even though she was older by a year, was gullible. She was a target for others and even with the protective stature she had made for herself, Marlene knew that her friend was too vulnerable. Which made Marlene protective of her 'sister'. A sister, oh how she wished for one before her mother died giving birth to her youngest brother. A person to talk with about personal problems and boys, give each other makeovers, be someone to count and lean on, do each other's hair and nails, and Selena was the closest thing to that, and she was grateful for it. "Do you want me to do it?" She turned to look at Selena, who was looking at her with a hint of concern.

"Oh. Oh no need. I can do it. I never got a chance to say it last time we were here."

"Just be glad Barbie's not here. I don't want to be mean, but you could be quite insecure around her."

"Um, yeah. Where is she?"

"I told her to go buy some things for the apartment with Kyle." This was usual for the four when redecorating since Barbie had lots of free time and Kyle had immense style and taste. "I could go, but I don't think you'll like what I'll pick." That was kind of true. Some things weren't quite normal for Selena, but at least she could act like a normal person would. Sometimes. It was obvious in her fashion sense and her side of the bedroom just what kind of person the Asian was.

"You did give them a budget, didn't you?"

"I'm not that stupid."

"I didn't say you were. I was just checking. You know how those two would find ways to unnecessarily increase their wardrobe."

"Yeah, I got that. That's why I gave them a budget. Anyways, are we gonna stand here all day or are you going to do it?"

"Here goes." Marlene turned back to the door and was about to knock on it when the door swung open. A tall tanned man dressed in expensive clothes and jewelry rushed out of the place, followed by a shorter and chubbier man and Mort.

"Hi Selena!" The boy waved to the surprised lady. "Bye Selena!"

"Hi?" The boy burst into giggles and ran into the apartment across from where they came from after the other two.

"Was," Marlene turned to her friend in confusion, "that Jacobs and Co?"

"Oh yeah. What were they doing in the boys' place?"

Marlene grinned and pushed the half opened door all the way in. "One way to find out." She walked in and pulled out a flashlight, glancing back only once to gesture at the brunette. "Come on!"

"Marls, I don't think…" Selena looked about the dark interior, which was soon flooded by light. "Oh what the heck." She slowly walked into the apartment and joined Marlene in what looked like the living room. "Place's tricked out." Selena looked about in awe and took a step forward while Marlene placed the box on a nearby table.

_Intruder alert! Intruder alert!_

The voice pierced through the girls' ears, causing them to cover their ears while a red light flashed about the place coming from a little bulb that had appeared out of nowhere on the ceiling.

"Not good."

"What?" Marlene shouted over the noise and looked over at Selena, who spoke back at her with a slight soulless look in her eyes.

"Run."

"What?"

"RUN!" The Asian pushed her forward and the two stumbled for the front door. The sound was surprisingly distant when Marlene reached the hallway, but she didn't care as she closed the door behind her.

"That was so wrong. We shouldn't have gone in, Sel, we…" Marlene looked about the hallway and stopped when she spotted the door. "Oh oh." She reached for the doorknob and pulled open the door. "Sel-mmph?!" A hand clamped itself over her mouth and then nothing.

* * *

"Marlene. Maarrleeene. Wakey wakey, Marley."

"Wha? Selena?" Marlene forced open her eyes and the faint light filtered into her sight. The light grew and she found herself staring at a turned off ceiling fan. _Wait, what? _Marlene lifted her head and body, ignoring the grogginess in her mind, and the ground beneath her shifted. "Whoa!" She cried when her hand slipped through the 'ground'. Her face collided with a net and she blinked her hazel greens to stare at Skipper, who was staring back at her with a slight grin.

"'Morning. Or afternoon, since it is," Skipper turned to Kowalski, who was busy dotting down something on a clipboard.

"1427."

"1427."

"It's 2 already?" Marlene placed a hand to her forehead. "Gosh, the girls should be back by now and…Selena! Where's…" She trailed off when she spotted the lady upside down, with a rope looped around her left foot that went from her foot to the ceiling and then to a hook on the other side of the room.

"Hey, girl. How's it hanging?"

"Are you serious?"

"What? I can't be joking seriously?"

Marlene rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Typical. I should've known."

"Hey, you had years. Don't tell me you still don't know me."

"Do I want to know everything about you?"

"No, you do not. Have to." Selena added the last bit after some brief thought. "Hum." Selena wiggled her nose and stared at the boys for a while. "You guys got a reason for leaving me like this?"

"Yes." Skipper briefly said the word and turned to Selena, narrowing his eyes at her. "Intrusion." A huge deflated sigh came from Selena as she let her arms slack down.

"Dude…how many times do I have to tell you? I didn't-"

"Not until I get your friend's testimony." Skipper turned back to Marlene, whose total confusion was clear on her face. She had just woken up in a net suspended above the ground, along with Selena, who was in a worse situation considering the female hated being upside down or held against her will. Life just wasn't fair. Or maybe it was this guy who wasn't fair.

"What testimony? Why do you keep treating us like this? Put us down." Marlene fisted her hands and glared at the man. She also made herself look menacing, or attempted to, since it was hard to do that in a large holed net. "Put us down now."

"Or what?" Marlene just wanted to smack that silly grin off his face. "You'll call Jay? With what?" He glanced back at a table, where Marlene could make up the devices she and Selena owned and carried just hours before placed neatly on the table.

"We didn't even do anything!" Marlene threw her arms down and continued her glare down with the cocky man. "You're doing this against our will!"

"I have the right to do this to you, most especially since we have video evidence of your intrusion."

"Well," Selena started to roll her eyes, thought better of it and just crossed her arms, "why don't you rewind that tape and you'll see that I've been telling the truth this entire time."

"I know." Dumbstruck looks appeared on Selena and Marlene's face as the man casually crossed his arms, his grin now a grim line.

"Then why are you doing this?! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Selena screeched, much to the displeasure of Skipper, who glared at her. "LET US GO!"

"Hey, watch the language. My brother's here."

"I don't fucking care, you bastard!" Private's eyes grew wide and he let out a small gasp which he covered immediately. Kowalski, Rico, Marlene and the Doberman which was quietly lying beside the couch the entire time all looked bewildered. "Let us go!"

"I told you to shut it!"

"You shut it!"

"Miss Valentine," Skipper's voice had gone increasingly low and dark, "I'm warning you. I'm not one to give second chances."

After a while of scrutinizing the man, Selena raised a nonchalant brow at him and spoke in a different low voice.

"I don't give a damn."

"She's screwed." Kowalski murmured under his breath, earning an elbow nudge from Rico.

"Miss Valentine," Skipper started in the same voice before his features turned muddled. He frowned as a thought drifted into his mind and he took another look at Selena, who seemed confused now than angry.

"Did you hear that?"

"Pardon?" She shook her head and sighed.

"Nevermind. I'm just crazy. Must be my mind again." Something else stormed through Skipper's mind in a sad emotional sweep, which took him by surprise and he found himself blinking. "Bro, you okay? You're paler than usual." And it was true. The guy looked like he had just saw a ghost or a very disturbing yet true thought.

"I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Who are you to tell me what to feel?"

"I'm just concerned. Something wrong with that? Is it against the law now? Will you take me jail?" She asked with a grin, somehow keeping her head tilted while she stared at him. "Will you?"

"Don't taunt me."

The grin fell away and she snarled at him. "Ditto."

"Abnormal."

"Looking at it." Skipper's hands curled into fists and Selena's eyes briefly stared at them before grinning back at him. "You'll beat an innocent little girl?"

"You're not a girl. And you are not innocent."

"How right you are. Congratulations. You've graduated from stupid to barely there."

"Selena," Kowalski started with a glance from Skipper to Selena, "it's not wise."

Selena just ignored him and continued staring at Skipper. "We can go at this all day and night, pretty boy, but it'll get us nowhere."

"Pretty, boy?" Skipper barely repeated as he blinked at her. "What?" She merely winked at him, did a mid air sit-up and reached inside one of her military boots. "We took the knife. Don't bother."

"Oh, what a pity. Would've been better than this." She huffed when she let go of her foot, falling back in a whoosh that sent her swinging back and forth. She unclasped her hand as she swung toward Skipper and held out whatever she was holding toward him. The man's eyes widened and he stumbled back when he saw the item. He let out a short yell as he tripped over his feet and fell back, much to Selena's amusement. "Whoops. Down goes Jack." Skipper stared up at her form his position, eyes wide in fear. The lady looked at him with a hint of a smile. "Are you really trypanophobic?" Skipper shook his head to clear something and opened them with anger directed toward Selena. He quickly got to his feet and Selena blinked when she saw his face right before hers, her hands holding her steady.

"HOW?!"

Selena blinked again, her face blank of any emotion.

"How the hell did you find out?! Who's your source?!" She stared at him. "Tell me, you freak!"

Everyone was clearly shocked by this, but no one dared interrupt the enraged man, aside from Private.

"Skippah." The boy was ignored by the two as Selena muttered under her breath.

"Somebody told me…"

"Who?"

"Why don't you tell me?" Skipper swung about and narrowed his eyes on the others, specifically Kowalski, who took a surprised step back. "She's not here."

"Barbie?"

Selena mimicked the sound of a buzzer. "Wrong again."

"I don't…wait. It's not possible."

"Depends on what that is."

"It's not possible. You can't be…"

"Can't be what? Have you lost it, man? Look, that was only an illusion trick. Makes you see things using a trigger word." She opened her hands before him and shook them. "I got nothing here. No needle."

"But…"

"Just a trick, man. You'll get over it. I do things like this all the time. I like to scare people."

"How did you know?"

"You still don't recognize me, do ya?" The man stared at her, eyes never blinking or moving from her, and shook his head slowly. "Okay, okay. I'll try to recreate myself here. It's gonna be pretty pathetic though." She cleared her throat, but stopped in the middle of the action and looked over at Skipper. "Okay, how about Denmark instead?"

"What the heck. Do you know everything about me? You're spy, aren't you?"

"I wish. Then I would be down from here a long time ago and kick your big aggressive butt back to Copenhagen, you bee. You're damn annoying."

"You are making absolutely no sense here. Are you trying to prosecute yourself?"

"That's me. How about Hans?" His eyes visibly shrunk at the name. "Ringing a bell here?"

"What's your game, spy?"

"Damn, you're persistent and stubborn. Reminds me of someone…" She shook her head of a thought and gestured to herself. "It's me, man. The pathetic servant girl? The one you saved?"

"I save a lot of people."

"Sheesh. Hans wasn't kiddin when he said you were arrogant."

Skipper sighed deeply and looked back at her with a raised brow. "Try to convince me, 'cause you don't look like her."

"Dude, duh. I was covered in grime and blood and whatever. I haven't showered in days back then, so I was as black as a chimney's inside. Why don't you just check out my eyes? It's the same anyway. 'one of a kind', or so you said." Selena took in a deep breath when she found herself face-to-face with Skipper, who took hold of her head, steadied it and studied her eyes. "Now you're just plain creepy, bro." She frowned and swatted him away. "Get lost, man. You're freaking me out."

"You scared me, Selena." He replied in a matter of fact tone before smirking and letting go of her. "You'll pay for that later. I'll make sure of it."

"Dude! NO!" Selena gasped in horror and stared wide eyed at the man, who stepped back with the same smirk and gestured to Rico. "Don't you dare! I hate you!" Skipper turned to Rico.

"Get them down and settled. We owe them an apology."

"You better not be thinking what I think you're thinking!"

"I'm not your ex, Selena. Don't order me around."

"He's not my boyfriend! Hans is NOT my boyfriend! Agh! Stop saying that! And who gave you permission to use that nickname? Were we that close?"

Kowalski turned to Selena, flabbergasted.

"Hans is your ex?!"

"WE NEVER DATED. WE HUNG OUT. THERE'S A DIFFERENCE. Skipper, tell him."

"Eh." The man shrugged indifferently. "You two kissed. And you stayed in one room."

"You meanie! It was just one kiss! And we did NOTHING. I was just lonely and he was a gentleman by sleeping on the floor beside the bed."

"Gentleman?" Skipper repeated with a sneer. "Right."

"You kissed him? How could you kiss him? And Hans of all people?"

"And how could you not tell me?" Marlene pouted at Selena, who groaned in exaggeration and dropped her arms.

"It was just one, accidental kiss! It wasn't my fault he pushed me!" Selena gestured wildly to Skipper. "The guy pushed me!"

Skipper shrugged and folded his arms.

"I didn't push you."

"Liar! I'm gonna kill you, man! You mother-"

"On second thought, I love the fact that you'll be hanging around here."

"You evil being." Selena growled with a glower.

"You're mistaken. I'm being nice here."

"Nice my foot. Get me down! So I can murder your ass, jackass."

"Language please."

"You're polite now?" Selena sarcastically asked before she blinked. "Wait...baby G! Baby G! Mommy needs you!"

"Who?" Selena merely pointed at Skipper with a grin as Kowalski's eyes grew wide.

"Selena," Kowalski ran forward, hands outstretched, "wait, no!"

Selena frowned and pushed him away as she moved her mouth away from him.

"Attack! ATTACK!" Guardian barked loudly, got to his feet, and jumped on Skipper just as the man turned around.

"Skippah/Skipper/Skip'er!" Private, Marlene and Rico called out in horror while Selena and Kowalski paused and looked over at the man and dog.


	10. Sorry, I'm Not Sorry

_**(Slightly edited)**_

* * *

**Chapter 9: Sorry, I'm Not Sorry**

"I'm really, really," Marlene placed the pancakes she and Selena had worked on and placed them on a plate, "really sorry, Skipper." The man standing by the table, not sitting like the others or leaning against anything for the matter, grumbled under his breath and glared at the table. Giggling brought his attention to Selena, making him frown even more.

"You're such a baby. man." The lady continued to giggle at the man, who glowered at her.

"How about you get bitten by a Doberman? We'll see who's laughing now."

"Aw," Selena cooed with hands clasped, "my baby would never bite me. Isn't that right, Baby G?" She patted the head of the dog obediently sitting beside her. The dog merely had his tongue hanging out happily accepting the hand on his head. Skipper continued to glare at the lady but turned his attention to Marlene who smiled apologetically at him as she placed the new stack of pancakes before him. Kowalski, Rico, Private and Barbie were quietly eating their own pancakes, the last already well informed of the accident of yesterday the second she went to check on her teammates. She was trying hard not to choke on her pancakes and bit down on her lip, not wanting to get extra training as promised by Skipper if any of them laughed. Again.

"I guess you learned your lesson, huh?" Skipper's mouth curled into a scowl.

"Are you trying to get my forgiveness or make this worse, woman?" Marlene shook her head, tapped his shoulder and pointed to the pancakes.

"Just eat."

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

She placed her hands on her hips.

"Don't tell me Guardian bit your hand too." Without speaking, he held the hands he had been hiding under his arms, pulled off the glove of one with his teeth and watched as Marlene's eyes grew wide at the bite mark on it. "Oh."

"Thanks," Skipper placed the glove back, crossed his arms and looked away, "but no thanks. I'm not hungry anyway." Marlene rolled her eyes and reached for a fork.

"Don't be ridiculous. I called you here for an apology breakfast. Now open your mouth."

"Huh," his eyes grew wide when Marlene stuffed a forkful of the pancake in his mouth.

"Do I need to teach you how to chew and swallow too?" The man frowned at her and chewed the baked good before swallowing. "Good boy."

"I-" He was stopped by another forkful that was shoved into his mouth this time. He quickly swallowed this one and glared at Marlene. "I don't need to be fed."

"Yes you do. Now open."

"No." He moved his head away from the fork and glared at it, hoping that it would just go away. "Stop it, Miss Sullivan." She lowered the fork but didn't put it down. She pouted at him, shook her head and gestured to the plate.

"Not until you finish this."

"Fine! I'll just," he grabbed for the fork, but released it immediately when a pain shot through his hand, causing him to hold his wrist. "I can't even hold a fork." He murmured under his breath and shook his hand off the weird feeling. "How am I supposed to hold a gun…" He winced and shook his hand again. He wanted desperately to massage it but his other hand was still unable.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." He grumbled again with the same glare at the table, tucking his hands under his arms. "I'm hungry." Marlene stared at him like he had grown another head. "Well?" Marlene pointed the fork at him, one hand on her hip.

"Don't you dare start with me, mister. Nobody told you to keep us like that. You had that coming." Then she turned and headed back to the coffee maker, pouring up a cup of coffee, probably for Skipper.

"And where the hell does she think I would go? I've got nothing else to do. I'm stuck with these," he glared down at his hands, "and I can't even sit down." Selena grinned widely and asked him innocently.

"How'd you sleep?" She, and a barely holding in laughter Private, received a glare from the man. "I'm just asking. Seeing as your rear's unusable at the moment, how'd you sleep? And how'd you go to the toilet? Or shower for the matter? Did you even brush your teeth?"

"None of your business, Valentine."

"Dude," a grin grew on her face, "you didn't brush your teeth? Since yesterday?"

"Shut up."

"Dude…you're disgusting." Selena burst into giggles, along with Private, who coughed afterwards to hide it when Skipper turned to him.

"I said," a spatula collided with his head, "ow!" He faced Marlene who waved the spatula at him and raised her brows at him expectantly.

"Excuse me. My roof, my rules. No fighting with my best friend or anybody else, okay?"

"I am not staying here, okay?" The man copied her tone mockingly.

Kowalski cleared his throat, getting the attention of his leader. "But you have to, Skipper. There's nobody to help around-"

"I don't need help. I'm perfectly capable of doing things on your own."

"Personal hygiene." Kowalski coughed under his breath and looked away. "No hands. You stink."

"Shut up, Kowalski." He turned to Marlene with a frown. "You're not giving me a sponge bath."

"Who says I want to?/Keep dreaming, pretty boy." Marlene and Selena simultaneously spoke, one with a raised brow and the other with crossed arms. Marlene sighed and placed the spatula down.

"Look, Skipper, it's only for a few hours. Until," she looked over at the table of guests and Barbie, "one of your boys get back." The man merely looked and grumbled something about not being able to join in on a mission and having to sit back like a desk monkey. Marlene shook her head and murmured something in Spanish, to which Skipper answered in the same language. It wasn't understandable by anyone there except Kowalski and the rest turned to the man who listened intently.

Selena bent down to his level and whispered in his ear. "What are they saying?" He was about to answer when his eyes grew wide.

"That's illegal. I think he crossed the line."

"Yeah…" Selena drawled and walked up to them when Marlene turned around, grabbed a rolling pin and turned back to Skipper, who looked from the pin to the angry Marlene and back to the pin. "Whoops." Selena caught the pin, forced it out of Marlene's hands and placed it behind her back. "Kitchen tools ain't killing tools, girl. Unless you wanna use the knives." Selena grinned and nodded over to the wooden stand with assorted knives in it. "We got a whole buffet."

"Only when we've got dead meat…" Marlene murmured under her breath, barely audible to anyone but Selena and Skipper.

Selena winked at Skipper and went to put the rolling pin back in a drawer. "Got ya." She had just closed the drawer when she heard Marlene speak up again. The anger was already gone from her voice, her best friend was really good with calming down, but there was still a warning in it.

"I've lived with seven brothers, Skipper, older and younger than me. Of course I know your kind. Don't even think of pulling something like that on me again. I will not hesitate to pick up the frying pan this time." Selena bit down on her lip but a few giggles escaped from her mouth and she covered them when Skipper turned to her with a death glare. Before he could say something, Marlene whacked her hand on his head.

"Ow! Miss Sullivan!"

"Don't play with me. It's Marlene." Private and Barbie joined in Selena's quiet giggling while Kowalski and Rico kept their sniggers down. "And don't you dare try anything on Selena. You will regret that. Now open."

"I-mpjgkjhedk!" Skipper mumbled through a mouthful of pancake, earning him another thwack on the head, which resulted in a coughing fit when the food went down the wrong pipe. Marlene patted his back with concern written all over her face until he finally stopped and properly swallowed the treat. "Now you're trying to kill me, woman?! What the heck is wrong with you? OW!"

"What did I just say?" Skipper half pouted, half frowned at her and rubbed the hand she had hit.

"Stop hitting me…"

Marlene's frown went away and she looked down at the hand guiltily. "Aw…" She reached for it, but Skipper held it away from her.

"No."

"Skipper…"

"My hand."

"Now you're acting like a child." He replied with a tongue in her direction. The brunette blinked in surprise at the action and bit her bottom lip. She placed both hands on her hips and shook her head at him. "Okay, fine. Let's have it that way then." Before anybody could do anything, Marlene grabbed his ear and pulled him to the living room, despite his protests. Selena immediately burst out into laughter, followed quickly by Private and then the rest of the group.

"What's going on?" They all turned to Kyle, who was freshly showered and dressed for school, standing by the kitchen doorway. She frowned and slowly looked behind her. "And why's Marlene threatening Skipper with the spatula?" This made the group laugh even harder, drowning Skipper's protests as the Californian dragged him to the couch. "Um, hello?" Kyle called even though she was grinning at the scene in the living room. "A little help for the newcomer?"

Selena, unlike the others, didn't cease her laughter and shook her head. "This is my favorite day. It has to be." Skipper's pained cry wafted into the room and Kyle stared wide eyed at the scene before stepping into the kitchen. Selena wiped an imaginary tear away and grinned at Kyle. "What happened, Kal?"

"I think Skipper sat on something."

"YEZ!" Selena threw her fists up and jumped about. "Ha! In your face, man! That's what you get! That's what you call karma, baby!" She started to do a little dance as she hummed to a song. "Oh oh oh, I really don't care!"

"Selena!" Marlene called to the lady angrily, who immediately shut her mouth and walked outside innocently.

"Yes, Marlene? Do you," Selena swallowed a giggle as she tried hard not to look at the sight of Skipper uncomfortably sprawled out on the couch, "need something?"

"Before you go, could you call up the pet shop and tell them I can't come today?"

"Sure." She nodded and picked up her phone. After all, all the contacts she needed was already on her phone, ready to use anytime. "Anything else?"

"Get me duct tape." She glared down at Skipper. "He won't sit still."

The man's eyes grew wide and he shook his head, getting to his feet.

"No, wait, please, it hurts. I really can't-" Selena burst out into laughter again but she muffled it when Skipper and Marlene stared at her.

"Sorry." She mumbled quietly and hurried to her room. She quickly closed the door behind her before dropping to her knees and laughing her heart out. "Duct," she spoke between breaths as she forced herself to stop laughing, "tape. Duct tape. I need duct tape." She swallowed the rest of her laughter and with a grin, proceeded around the room. "Duct tape!" She sang out while looking through some drawers. "Where are you? I know you're in here somewhere…Aha!" She pulled out a thick roll and practically skipped to the living room. She was about to tell Marlene about the duct tape when she heard someone heaving uncontrollably. She entered the kitchen, pushed past Skipper who was leaning on the doorway and stared in shock as Marlene escorted a red faced Kyle out. "Wha," she chased after Marlene as the two headed for the girl's room, "what happened?" Marlene looked back at her solemnly.

"Guardian." Selena paused as the realization sunk in. Her ward was highly allergic to dog fur, and _she_ was the one who brought in Guardian. The wave of guilt overcame the Asian who gulped and ran into the room Kyle shared with Barbie. "I've already got Barbie to call Melman."

Selena shook her head, unable to enter the room with the sight of the deathly looking girl now lying on her bed. She had her eyes closed and was having a little spasm now and then, but Selena could see in her closed hands that she was trying to control herself. "She won't make it, Marlene." Marlene's head shot up and she looked over at Selena with a surprised look.

"Selena..."

"He won't be able to come in time. He's at the hospital. Nobody'll be able to come in time." Before her friend could reply, Selena held up her hands. "I want you to stabilize her. Make her breathe in and breathe out steadily. Don't force it, it needs to be natural. Keep her back straight and loosen her blouse and bra so that her airways won't be restricted. I'll be right back."

Selena ran back to her room, ducked under the bed and pulled out a box. She moved aside other assorted medical supplies and equipment and took out a pump, a bottle of disinfectant, a clean cloth, a thick plastic tube and other items. She left the box there and headed to the kitchen, walking immediately up to Kowalski and shoving the things in her hands to him.

"You're making an endotracheal tube."

"Melman's-"

"She's not going to make it. You need to act now. Use that brain of yours and estimate travel time versus survival time in a child with a severe case of allergy." Without another word, Kowalski grabbed the things in her hands, cleared a space on the table, placed them on the surface and started working on it. "What else?"

"The plastic tube works fine, but we need to keep the end from making scratches on her trachea. Get my pen." She stood there for a while, wondering what he was talking about until he raised his arm a bit and she saw the little fountain pen stuck in his breast pocket. She took it out and handed it to Kowalski, who twisted the top and a laser came out the pen tip. _You just can't beat the classics. _She watched quietly as he melted the exposed plastic end of the tube to a smooth finish, blew on it and handed it to her. "Insert it deep-"

"I know." She interrupted before grabbing the improvised breathing tube and rushing to the room. Kyle wasn't any better, but at least she was still breathing, just like Selena told Marlene to help her do. Marlene moved away and let Selena place the tube accordingly before taking the pump from Selena when it was handed to her. "Not too fast, not too slow. Keep it steady, deep and long." Marlene nodded and proceeded to do as she was told. Selena stood off from the side, watching as a tear fell from Marlene's eye onto the girl when she kissed the redhead's forehead, murmuring something. Unable to bear the thought of her almost dying, Selena turned away and marched to the living room, pulling out her cellphone. Everyone looked up at her when she entered but she made no eye contact as she paused and placed the phone to her ear. Barbie got to her feet and took a step toward Selena.

"Selena?" Selena didn't look at her and stared at the wall. "Who are you calling?"

"Andy." She noticed how the blonde's eyes went over to Private, but she didn't see the boy nod and slowly and quietly slip outside. She was suspicious of her sister's action, but she concentrated more on the tiny crack on the wall. She waited for the ring to stop before speaking.

"'Ello?" The voice of the boy was relief to her somewhat and she felt herself relaxing. At least someone was up on their feet. "Selena? Is something wrong? Where's Kyle?"

"She can't come in to school."

"Why not? Did something happen to her?" Selena tensed up again, but she forced herself to relax. "What happened to her?" The boy asked when she didn't say anything for a while.

"She's, going to be fine."

"But," Selena quickly closed the cellphone and let out a breath.

"Okay..." She shook her head and dialed in another number. She waited for the ring to stop before speaking. "Kyle can't come in." She swallowed, licked her lips and focused her eyes on the tiny crack on the wall. "Send in a note to the teachers."

"Selena," the sound of the school principal's voice, or Spencer came to her ear, "she's due for a very important meeting in a few hours. What happened?"

"Meeting? She's just a kid. How'd she get a meeting? And with who?" There was a hesitated sigh at the other end and Selena frowned. "Spence, out with it. What meeting?"

"It's an audition. She asked about scholarships and I told her about the Julliard one. She wants to go, and that's the reason she's been staying back lately."

"What the hell is she doing that for? Why'd you let her in the first place?" The words came out of her mouth, but she already knew why the girl was auditioning. It was because of her. Kyle wanted to pay her back. If she got the scholarship, Selena didn't have to slave over work for them. And she'll be able to pay back everything she owed the Asian. She'd been dying to know what the little redhead had been hiding before whenever she came to the door to see PS bringing Kyle home, but now, well, _she_ was dying. Even the sight of Skipper still not able to sit was not funny anymore. Whatever came out of this, it was all her fault. She started this mess. It was always her fault.

"What happened to her, Selena?" She tried to swallow the lump in her throat and blinked away the tears coming to her eyes. "Why can't she go?"

"I need to go." She jabbed her finger on the end call and tossed her phone. She didn't care that it landed on the couch, bounced and hit the ground, all the while cracking the screen. She was already out the front door, the uncontrollable tears dropping from her eyes.

* * *

_**I torture Skipper too much…XD Slightly edited.**_


	11. What?

_**There's a slight edit in Chapter 9, Sorry, I'm Not Sorry. It's not going to be important to later chapters, but it is significant to the story. It's near the end of the chapter, in case you're wondering. I forgot to add it in. Thank you for your cooperation.**_

* * *

**Chapter 10: What?**

Kowalski was just on his way to the school laboratory to pick up some things that he had run out of. The school laboratory was well stocked, with supplies coming in every month; compared to the laboratories uptown. Not only do they hate the scientist, due to certain competition involving him and their employees, but they refuse to give out supplies and there was no way Kowalski was going to _beg _for them to take him back in. So now the scientist was forced to get his materials from the school laboratory, not that the old custodian there cared before. He usually got away with it and nobody would complain. The new one, unfortunately, had helpers and he had to be careful in taking what he needed, not what he wanted. He'd forgotten to get the supplies yesterday and he had to start now, dragging the rest of the team with him. Naturally, Rico was just asleep in the back, since he wasn't driving, with Barbie cradled under his arm and Skipper was sitting far away from them, watching the sidewalks intently. Apparently, his 'wounds' had healed and he was good to go back on missions. To say Marlene's babysitting job was uneventful after the 'accident' was a lie, but the officer wanted no one to know how the microwave exploded, why there were knives sticking to the ceiling of the living room and why the girls needed a new television set, which he was obliged to pay for a new one.

"Kowalski," Private looked over at the man in the driver's seat from the scenery outside, "what's up with Selena?"

"How would I know? She's a woman. They have their own thing."

"Not that." Kowalski could have sworn he saw the boy glare at him, but he didn't check. "You went to school together with her, right?" He didn't answer but the boy continued talking. "You would know her more, wouldn't you?" Kowalski tapped his fingers on the wheel rhythmically, still not answering. "Well? What was she like back then?"

"Why do you want to know, Private?"

"She's my friend. And I don't want to ask her about her past. It looks like she doesn't want anyone to find out."

"She's, uh, not normal."

"How?"

"She, can see...things."

"Things? You mean she has a third eye or something?"

"Something like that..." He murmured under his breath, not wanting to continue the subject. But the boy was persistent.

"Is that why she acts loopy sometimes?"

"Well, I suppose if you've been seeing things that shouldn't be there and you're the only one who can see it, then you would most definitely go crazy."

"You don't believe her?"

"And you do?" Kowalski inquired of the boy before shaking his head at him and turning back to the road. "There's no such things as ghosts, lost spirits or the supernatural world. It does not exist. And she says she's a man of Science too."

"She says Julien can see them too. That's why Julien has her on board his team. To keep him sane I think. It's working, you know? He's not acting like an older version of Mort so much anymore."

Kowalski rolled his eyes with a scoff and mumbled under his breath while he ran a hand through his hair. "And she says she can see Benjamin Franklin too."

"She did?"

Kowalski dropped his other hand on the wheel and glared at the boy. "Absolutely not! The guy's been dead more than three centuries! That's just ridiculous, Private. You can't see ghosts, there's no such thing."

"Then won't you tell me why she's acting like something's out to get her all the time? I mean, every time Andy has a session with her, she looks behind her or stares at something behind him and it's just freaky."

"Why don't you ask Jay? He's the father after all."

"I don't think Jay's going to tell me if she's not going to tell me."

Kowalski bit down on his lip and shook his head. "Are you sure she doesn't want to tell you?" He looked over at the boy with a raised brow. "Or you never did ask her?"

"Uh..."

"Figured. Well, it's not my business to tell you about other people's pasts. I can't just tell you without permission from her."

"Not if I'm involved." The two looked at Skipper, who was now sitting behind the space between the two seats. "She's sensitive about the topic, Kowalski. There's no need to tell the private about it."

Private turned about in his seat and stared at the man.

"You know about it too?"

"And you're involved?" Kowalski added with a note of slight betrayal. Skipper raised a nonchalant brow at him.

"I saved her her second time there and brought her with me to Denmark. That's how she knew me." He then turned to the curious Private. "And I'm not telling you. It's a sensitive subject. She usually breaks down trying to explain it. It's not a good sight."

Kowalski shook his head, his fingers gripping the steering wheel tightly. "That's a lie. She doesn't care about it anymore."

"Well, were you there when I rescued her? I don't believe so. Maybe her first time wasn't all bad, but her second time must have really hurt."

"Hurt? You don't know what they do at the institution. It's like going back to the medieval ages with a mix of the modern torture. Meaning, you get hurt physically, emotionally and mentally. You don't come out a fully functioning human being. You could be armless, thoughtless, or emotionless. They won't let you out until you're broken somewhere. Sometimes, they don't let you out at all, because you're already DEAD." Private jumped at the anger in his mentor's tone, but quickly calmed himself down and nodded in understanding.

"I suppose...if it's _that_ bad." He noticed that Kowalski had released his tight hold on the wheel and was relaxing too."I don't want her to remember anything bad."

With a sigh, Kowalski shook his head again and leaned against his seat.

"You should just ask her. Trust me, she'll tell you. If she thinks you're up to it."

Yesterday...

_"T__ell me," Kowalski had just entered the Cast Out, diner by day and club by night and owned by no other than Julien, "how do you get over a conniving little bee?" Skipper and Rico went straight to the upper level of the diner, which was restricted to others but not to Julien, his employees, VIPs or the boys while Private and Barbie followed the tall man to the counter where Marlene, Gloria and Selena were. Gloria took a sip from the drink in her hand and raised it to Selena, who grabbed the coffee pot, poured more coffee into the cup and settled down on the stool behind the bar._

_"You just do." Gloria told the other as she set her cup down. "'Cause basically, she's not worth it."_

_Selena sighed and played with the empty cup she had, rolling the lone drop of coffee inside. __"I wish he can find someone worthwhile. That's the boss' problem."_

_"Jacobs?" Barbie stopped before them and blinked. "Jacobs' got a love problem? Over who?"_

_"His girlfriend?" Marlene raised a brow at the blonde. "Barbie, where have you been?"_

_"I swear I did not know that." Her sister rolled her eyes and turned back to arranging the pastries in the display. "So, what happened? And when?"_

_Now it was Selena's turn to raise a brow at Barbie, who stared back at her. She poured herself the coffee into the paper cup and picked it up but spoke instead of drinking it._

_"Last press conference he had. Precisely three nights before our arrival here. Some guy questioned him about a photo of the bee kissing another guy. The whole paparazzi got the whole break up made by the bee and I know it totally boosted both their popularity, but the guy's damn heartbroken. Apparently, she wanted nothing to do with the guy. Just using him for, you know, career gain. And she got it, so she's done with him. It's what he's moping about lately?"_

_"Ouch." Private commented and looked up at the upper level, though he couldn't see anyone at the moment. It was clear that was where the 'king' was when he wasn't at his condo or the apartment. He seemed now like the 'vampeer' he used to talk about. Even Skipper missed his random drop ins, not that Private's older brother was complaining. He just missed them. It was quiet in the apartment when Rico wasn't busy doing inventory, when Kowalski wasn't doing some crazy experiment and when Private would watch TV at full volume._

_"And he looks like Enrique Iglesias with the mumps and the dumps. Wish I could avenge him."_

_"Wanna make it happen?" Barbie chirped and pushed her duffel bag closer to Selena, patting the top of it. "I've got the note right here. Just give me a plan of action, chief, and we'll bring this bee down."_

_"Don't be silly. You know I don't like things like that."_

_"You're no fun."_

_"I'm not hurting someone, even if he or she deserves it. Go do it yourself. I want nothing to do with it." Barbie frowned and took her duffel back while Kowalski crossed his arms and looked down at the Asian._

_"You hit me all the time."_

_Selena looked up at him and shrugged casually._

_"Eh." She proceeded to down the coffee in a few gulps, folded the now empty cup and tucked it into her pocket. Kowalski raised a brow at the action but took no notice of it. He knew she was just saving the cup to use later, instead of using one of the glasses in the diner. She was just that weird, he had thought then before following her when she proceeded to the upper level leaving poor Private behind with the females._

_"Selena."_

_The Asian paused on the steps and turned to face him._

_"What?"_

_"You've been ignoring Kyle lately."_

_"What's it to you?"_

_"I know you're naturally rude," Selena let out her breath through her nostrils and crossed her arms._

_"Are we having a conversation or a fight? Because I'm not in the mood for either." The man continued to stare at her, just watching her reaction. "It's about him, isn't it?"_

_"How..."_

_"Well," she shrugged with her arms still crossed, "it is about him. You only come to me if you want something about him. That's pretty much all you'll do with me."_

_"Is Kyle in any trouble then?"_

_"Once she's out of the country, I don't think so."_

_"You're sending me away?"_


	12. She's Alive?

_**There's a slight edit in Chapter 9, Sorry, I'm Not Sorry. It's not going to be important to later chapters, but it is significant to the story. It's near the end of the chapter, in case you're wondering. I forgot to add it in. Thank you for your cooperation.**_

* * *

**Chapter 11: She's Alive?**

_"Why would you want to send me away?" Selena cursed under her breath when she saw the redhead standing at the bottom of the steps, looking up at her in shock. "Wh-when?"_

_"Hopefully, soon. It's a good thing I convinced your mother to have your passport made at an earlier time."_

_"My," Kyle repeated in surprise, "mother?" For her, it was rare for Selena to ever bring up her mother. It was a touchy subject for the two of them, and they didn't like hearing it, so it really was a surprise to Kyle when Selena said those words. She also wasn't aware that she had a passport..._

_"We're sending you to a boarding school. Away from here. Far away. You'll be fine there."_

_"Wait, what?"_ _Did she say 'we'? Selena quickly turned and headed up, taking two steps at a time. Kyle shook her head of the initial shock and hurried after her, ignoring Kowalski, who was just as confused as she was. "Selena! Wait!" She took hold of Selena's arm and the two stopped in the middle of the upper level. The lady took her arm back, but didn't move or face her. "What are you talking about? My mother's alive? She's alive?" She didn't answer and Kyle felt tears coming to her eyes. "__You told me she was dead! That she died in a stupid car accident! But she's alive?" Selena looked over her shoulder at her, her face solemn. "How could you hide this from me? I believed you!"_

_"And you don't have to anymore. Now get lost, kid." She snarled at the redhead before walking away, leaving Kyle sobbing on the spot._

_"Selena..."_

_"Kalina," Kowalski placed a hand on the girl's shoulder but she shrugged him off and ran away. He sighed and watched her run out the door, followed by Private and Marlene. He saw Selena standing before an empty booth, staring blankly at nothing and he marched over to her._

_"What the hell is wrong with you?" He snapped in her face but she didn't flinch, not even when he spun her around and slammed her onto the wall of a crystal booth nearby. "And what was that?__ Her mother**is** dead. Kathryn died in that 'car accident' years ago."_

_Her eyebrows creased deeply and she glowered at him._

_"Not Katy. The other one. Penny. Penelope Wascher."_

_"Penny didn't marry Katy. Heck, Katy was fourteen when she was killed." Selena rolled her eyes and pushed him away._

_"Doesn't mean Penny doesn't care. She does. She told me to split with the child before anybody could find out, most especially her dad. In any case, she's the one who adopted the girl the moment she could. I'm just the guardian. Why are you so concerned with her anyway? You've never cared about anyone but yourself."_

_"You're doing the same thing he did to me to her. You are leaving her alone. She doesn't deserve it, Selena."_

_"So you think her situation's similar to yours? It's not, Kowalski. Don't put yourself in it and stop with the pity. It's not working."_

_"I don't care what's working. You can't just send her away."_

_"Well, at least I'm thinking of her as still alive instead of dead while your father has plans for you to continue the regime. I doubt that has ever gotten out of your head. Do you plan on going back, K-"_

_"Don't you even insist on it. I refuse to be manipulated by a spawn of my father's."_

_"A spawn." Selena repeated in disgust, glaring at the man before her. "I didn't know I was such a disgusting creature to you."_

_"No, wait," he held a hand up and shook his head, trying to shake away the thought that had come up, "that didn't come out right. That wasn't what I wanted to say."_

_"Oh, we both know you speak your mind when you're mad. Don't deny what you've just said. I'm a SPAWN. In your father's cruel game of life and death."_

_"That wasn't-"_

_"I serve you and you alone, master." The lady hissed mockingly and Kowalski stepped back, shaking his head._

_"Stop it."_

_"What's wrong, master? Can you not grasp the truth? Is it too much for you?"_

_"Selena..."_

_"You're supposed to call me 'bitch'. I'm your slave. That's how we play the game."_

_"Selena, stop. I don't, I don't-"_

_"You don't know what your father does, golden boy. You've been in the shadows too long, you don't know what he does up front."_

_"And you have? You've been locked up in a cage for weeks."_

_"So he lets you out...or in, shall I say?"_

_"No, no, he doesn't. I just wanted to check on you."_

_"Why?" She asked, the suspicion clear in her voice. "You could still hear my screams and cries, couldn't you? Why would you want to know what I look like when he-"_

_He suddenly cried out in Polish and glared at Selena. The female had her eyes wide open and she was staring at him like she'd never seen something like him before. He continued to talk rapidly in the same language, all the while, not noticing the drastic change in Selena from confident to cowering._

_"Don't kill me." She murmured under her breath, though it wasn't audible to him at the moment. Her eyes drifted down and she started to shake. "Please don't kill me." She suddenly dropped to her knees and bowed down at his feet, snapping him out of his rant._

_"What the."_

_"Please," she pleaded with clasped hands, still in a bowed position, "I'm begging you. I'll do anything."_

_His stance calmed a bit but he was confused at her behavior now._

_"Selena?"_

_"I'll do what you want, please." She cringed when the man slowly got down on one knee and reached a hand for her face. "Don't do this to me."_

_"Selena, are you," he gently tilted her face up and his eyes widened at the sight of her glazed over ones, "are you there?" There was no emotion there, no sign of life. Like she wasn't even there at all. But her begging was real; the emotion in it was very raw._

_"I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I won't try to escape again, I swear. Please don't hurt me."_

_"Selena," he took hold of her arms and pulled her up into a sitting position, "it's me. Wake up."_

_"Please. I'll do anything. I'll, I'll, I'll-"_

_"Selena, wake up." He shook her a bit. "You're in New York."_

_"N-n-n-new," she stammered, still lost in her world, "Y-y-yo-y-york?"_

_"Yes, New York. In the Cast Out. You work here, remember?"_

_"Cast Out?"_

_"Damn the name of this place." He murmured under his breath before letting go of her, taking off his overcoat and folding the sleeves of his shirt. "How old are you?" She looked at him for a while before lifting a hand and counting on it. He felt his spirits drop and he shook his head, catching her attention. __"Do you remember your birthday?"_

_"Birth-day? What..."_

_"Your name?"_

_"Ki-K-"_

_"Your real name. Not that...name." He sighed. __"Your sister Callie?"_

_"Who?"_

_He finished folding his sleeves, even taking off the watch on one hand, and placed his hands on his knees as he knelt before her._

_"Do you remember me?" She blinked at him, then shook her head. He nodded at this and lifted up his arms, making sure that they were beside each other and that she could see his wrists perfectly well. "Do you remember me, Selena?" She blinked again, but didn't shake her head. "Okay," he dropped his arms and moved closer, trying to see if the glazed look in her eyes was gone. It was. __"Selena?" He shook her again. "Hello? Somebody there? Selena?" She just stared at him. __"Do something! Anything!" She just continued to stare at him. "Slap me or something!" He looked down in defeat and looked back up, only to have a hand collide with his face. __"...ow!" He held his cheek in shock while Selena pointed at him. Her eyes weren't empty now, and there was slight humor, probably from having the chance to slap him._

_"You told me to slap you."_

_He blinked and dropped his hand, forgetting about the pain._

_"Selena?" She looked around and raised a brow at him._

_"Were you talking to someone else?"_

_"You're back! Oh thank you Isaac."_

_"Where," she looked around, "where'd I go?" She looked down at her bent legs. "And why am I on the floor?"_

_"N-nowhere, actually." He smiled sheepishly at him and quickly rolled his sleeves down while Selena watched in suspicion. "You kinda 'dropped' out of sight for a moment there, so it kinda looks like you went somewhere. Um," she looked up at him as he stuffed his watch into his pocket and proceeded to slip on his overcoat, "may I ask, when was your last visit to Melman?"_

_"Why'd I need to visit him? I'm fine."_

_"Right...maybe you should-"_

_"I know if I'm fine, alright?"_

_"Perhaps, but-"_

_"No. Why are you insisting? What happened?"_

_"Nothing."_

_After a few seconds of observing him, she crossed her arms._

_"You're an idiot."_

_"And you're..." He started angrily, but quickly trailed, not wanting another 'attack' from Selena._

_"What?"_

_"Nevermind."_

_"What is this?" The two looked up at a furious looking Julien, who looked worse, with his clothes all rumpled and his hair out of place. "A Japanese party? Get off my floor." Selena got to her feet, as did Kowalski, but the female grabbed Julien's shirt and pulled him close._

_"Pipe down the tone, Jacobs," she snarled in his face, "or I swear I will call Javes back. You'll never hear the end of it." The Madagascan frowned deeply at Selena before pushing her hand away and walking away from the two._

He'd inquired about this so-called 'Javes' person, but she never answered him. Instead, she just picked up her tray and walked away, leaving him wondering. It was truly puzzling, but he didn't think Javes was important. He was probably the man Julien usually talk about, or to when Maurice and Mort weren't around once, that usually stayed in the corner and stared at him. He didn't talk about the man anymore thanks to Selena, which made Private feel better considering he had nightmares about the club's 'mysterious man'. And well, if Selena knew the man, obviously he was dead. Not that Kowalski believed that she could see the dead.

All the while, Skipper and Rico were there and they saw everything. The event surprised them but for the first time, Skipper didn't ask questions, adding on Rico's surprise. Perhaps Selena and Skipper had a connection he didn't know of. Somehow, that didn't settle well with him, and at the same time, he was glad they did. At least somebody cared for the Asian, aside from her best friend and Jay of course.

Just then, something Private said earlier entered his mind.

"Wait," Kowalski slowed the SUV to a stop beside the sidewalk and frowned at the boy, "what do you mean 'session'?"

Private averted his eyes to his hands. "Uh..."

"You've been getting tutoring lessons? From her?"

"She volunteered."

"And what am I? Deoxidized iron in chloride?"

The boy blinked at the man in confusion. "What?"

Skipper rolled his eyes and placed his hands on their seats, leaning forward so that the two would hear him.

"Could we just head to the lab already? Jay would have our rears if we don't get a start on that dead body." Skipper moved back and settled in his seat, looking out the window yet again while Private shivered at the mention of going into the morgue. They had just gotten the recent body from the latest crime scene and Private was doing his best not to puke at the image of the mutilated body that was embedded in his brain. He was going to have troubles sleeping again.

"Ah," Kowalski mumbled and set the car into motion, "forget it."

* * *

Barbie peeked an eye open, looked up at Rico, who was still sleeping, over at Skipper, who raised a brow at her briefly before turning back to the window and then at the rear view mirror. Kowalski was looking back at her but when he saw that she was awake all this time, he quickly looked away and stared at the road. Barbie frowned deeply, feeling the urge to kick the man out of the car, but remembered the oblivious Private sitting quietly an observing the outside world like Skipper. She shook her head and laid it on Rico's chest, closing her eyes. She made a mental note to kick the man's rear later, during training, for messing with her sister like that.

She saw what happened in the club; she wanted to run after Kyle but the sight of Kowalski cornering Selena caught her. Besides, Marlene and Private were already after the redhead, so she went to listen in. She was surprised at the quick shift in the Asian's behavior but she did have her suspicions about Kowalski being involved in the start of Selena's weird behavior, which only worsened just days after the encounter between the two. She already had sleepless nights due to the screams in the room next to hers but it was better than the guilt of not having Kyle being able to perform in school properly. She'd given her ear plugs to the redhead but it wasn't needed after the whole allergy incident. Selena had stuck to staying to the hotel room permanently, only coming to the apartment to help with chores, groceries or other things.

She wondered how Marlene handled it though. She was still her cheery self, but looking a little subdued. Surely she missed her friend too; it just wasn't too noticeable. She didn't particularly like Marlene, for some unknown reason, but it wasn't serious. Selena had commented that she was 'jealous' although Barbie just laughed it off. Now that she thought about it, maybe she was jealous of the brunette. After all, she didn't have to worry about someone wanting to kill her all the time and watch her back like an attack was coming soon.

Barbie suppressed a sigh and buried her face into Rico's side. Sometimes, she wished she was normal again. It was NOT normal to think that someone was going to kill you one day. It was worse when it came to Selena. Not only did she have an emotionally and mentally unstable sister but the lady was getting too jumpy nowadays. And, she still didn't know that Barbie was working for the SPA. If she knew, well, _if_. For now, she was still a 'computer consultant' to her, hanging out with her 'boyfriend' Rico.

She needed an excuse to hang out with the team after all. She wasn't great in science or strategies like Kowalski or Skipper and she did not like hanging out with people younger than her, she wasn't good with children, which meant that Private was out. So she had no choice but to announce to everyone that Rico was her 'boyfriend'. He was doing a good job of acting. Or, at least she thought it was acting. Sometimes it was hard to define if he was really acting or being very sweet when he kisses her on the cheek lightly or hands her a flower, specifically a pink daisy. _How'd he know that? Did Selena tell him? They have been hanging out lately..._

As if on cue, Rico opened his eyes slowly and stretched, before looking down at her like she was an insect. (Mind you, Rico loves insects.) His mouth curled into that crooked grin of his and he dropped his arms down.

"Mornin'."

"Uh, yeah. Morning."

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. Why'd you ask that?" He nodded to her and she stared down at herself, clearly not understanding. She saw movement from the corner of her eye and looked up at Skipper, who was back to staring down the streets. She blinked and upon closer inspection, noticed a little red on his cheeks. "Why..." She blinked, looked down at the 'space' between her and Rico, at Skipper then back at Rico, before scooting away.

No wonder Skipper was looking at her like that; he didn't like public displays of affection, especially in his boundaries. But she'd been cuddling with Rico and she didn't even know it, so maybe he would be nice about it and not give her extra training...

"Uh," she licked her lips and continued to move away from him, "sorry. I was a little tired." _Liar, as Selena would call you right about now. Or Chicken._

He nodded, a little sadly, and proceeded to look out the window on his side.

"'Tis okay." She looked away from him, feeling a little more than flushed. After all, she was guilty of giving Rico the notion that they could possibly be together. Not that it was impossible, but well, she didn't mix work with her relationships. The last time she did that, she got stuck with the name 'McHale', a hateful and pitiful reminder not to date again, and almost got Selena killed. Thrice. A fact that has angered Jay so much that he refused to let her change her name back to Valentine, even after getting the divorce down. Again, the name was a very hateful and pitiful reminder.

_He's still not a bad guy, Callie... _"No. Not again." Everyone, except Kowalski who took a look at her from the mirror, turned to her.

"What was that, McHale? Not again what?" Skipper inquired with the usual raised brow. Her cheeks burned even more and she felt like punching herself.

"Nothing..." She sang out softly, stared at her bag and pulled out her laptop, aching for something to do. "It was absolutely nothing, boss."


	13. Tick Tock

**Chapter 12: Tick Tock****  
**

Kowalski strode into the laboratory and froze at the sight of the Asian's back. He looked back at Skipper and Rico before cautiously rounding the table she was at. He grinned widely when he found out that the lady had propped herself up on an arm with her limp hand holding onto a pencil, all while she was asleep. The books were open and she was clearly working on the problems, the remains of erasers evident by the sides.

"Isn't that adorable?" He peeked over her shoulder while the others moved into the room. "Hmm. She forgot to get the square root."

"Kowalski." The Polish turned to Skipper, who tapped his watch. "We're on a schedule here. Get a move on."

"This will take a while, Skipper. The process of centrifugation is quite long."

Skipper sighed and took a seat next to Rico, who was just as bored. "Don't take too long."

Kowalski nodded and turned to Rico. "Did you bring Eddie?" Rico nodded uncertainly and Kowalski's grin grew. "Perfect."

* * *

"Chocolate cheese…" Selena murmured, smiling slightly at the dream she was having. A sigh escaped her lips and she felt her head tilt. Heavenly chocolate with cheese fillings…oh how it only existed in books, specifically Geronimo Stilton books. And Thea Stilton. And, Selena frowned at a tickling on her nose. The tickling grew a bit and she shifted in her position, sitting up to her full height. She wiggled her nose before forcing her eyes open groggily. Through half-lidded eyelids and a lopsided smile, she stared at the brown thing held out before her face on a hand. Her eyes zeroed in on the creature and she froze. A second later, she grabbed her nose and her eyes widened to that of saucers. "AHHHHH!" She screamed before scrambling off the stool. Or falling off it ungracefully, getting a whole different scream from her. Selena dropped to the ceramic tiled floor face flat and she groaned. A new tickling sensation on her neck chased away the pain and she slowly turned around, meeting with a brown face and brown feelers. "AHHHH!" She screamed again and got to her feet, swatting at her back. "Get it off! Get it OFF! GET IT OFF!" She finally got the insect off and scrambled to her feet, running to the other side of the table.

"It's not going to eat you." Kowalski informed her, keeping in his laughter while the lady stood up and glowered at him. She pointed to the cockroach as Kowalski bent down to pick it up.

"It's a disgusting menace that needs to be exterminated at once! All of it!"

"It's a miracle of Science, remember?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh right. And Science is the same thing killing it since nature is doing a poor job of it."

"Ingredients are natural."

"But improved elements also known as chemicals are not. They have been modified to suit the world's _needs_. And I despise it."

"You practically live here!"

"I said I despise the modification of the natural elements, NOT the laboratory."

The man shook his head and prevented an eye roll but saw the roach and smirked at the lady. "I knew you were scared of roaches, Selena, but I didn't know it was that bad."

"Evil." The lady hissed and backed away from him.

"Who, me?" Selena glared at him before picking up a bunsen burner and walking over to him, pointing the burner at the insect on his hand. Kowalski stepped back and placed the roach on the counter.

"No unauthorized fires. That's a rule." Selena dropped the burner to her side and cocked her head at him.

"No unauthorized personnel."

"Touché." Selena slammed the device on the counter and glared at him. "What?"

"What's the big idea?"

"Of what?"

"Scaring the heck out of me?"

"I still think you're hellish. I mean, look at you right now. I'm shivering here."

Selena rolled her eyes and walked back to the counter with her books and things on it. "Very funny."

"You missed a square root by the way."

She looked up at him with a frown. "What?"

"A square root. Right there." He pointed somewhere on the paper. "It's the final step. 18, was it?"

Selena looked down at her notes and frowned at it. "There is no square root…oh. Damn." She slapped a hand to her forehead. "I forgot about the shortcuts. Now I get it. It is 3 square root of 2. Duh."

"You're welcome."

"Uh, yeah, thanks," she cautiously turned to Kowalski with a raised brow and set her pen down, "but what are you doing here? With them?" She looked over at Skipper and Rico, who looked back at her with bored expressions.

"Madam," Kowalski pulled out a slip of paper from inside his coat and held it out to her, "I need this." Selena stared at him before snatching the note and reading it. She scoffed and handed it back to him while looking away.

"You don't have clearance or permission for this."

"I don't have to."

She turned back to him with a sneer. "Don't get cocky with me. There is no way I'm just going to hand you-"

"Selena, do you want everyone to know what happened to you during third grade?"

"Third grade?"

"The fair. The house of horror. The clown."

"You can't be serious. That was years ago! I thought we were over that." The man grinned, leaned on the counter and waved the slip before her.

"What were you going to do again?"

Selena shook her head, grabbed the paper and hopped off the stool. She marched to the door in the back, pulling out a key from her pocket and inserting it into the lock. "I swear, I'm going to destroy you..."

"Darling, you're not going to find something worthy against me. And you're not threatening me with Jay, or he'll find out what happened too."

"I get it, Kowalski." The lady marched in, slamming the door against the wall while Kowalski chuckled and looked down at the obedient roach on the counter.

"She's too soft. She won't dare kill any of us. Or she'll regret it."

A crash sounded and Kowalski rolled his eyes.

"I was being nice, Selena." She appeared in the doorway and stared at him, looking a little nervous.

"What?" Her voice came out softly, but she cleared her throat right after and managed a small smile. Kowalski frowned at her sudden change in attitude, but dismissed it. She was probably scared of getting suspended or expelled for this, not that a certain Edward Jefferson would allow it.

"Why did you break it?" She shook her head and crossed her arms before entering the storage room again.

"I dropped a dish." Light tingles from glasses as she placed test tubes, test tube racks, a centrifuge and other materials into a basket. "I don't think of you all the time, okay? Don't be so self conceited."

"You think of me?" A grin found its way onto his mouth and he leaned on the table as he watched a stone faced Selena walk to him with the basket. "I didn't know I was so special."

"Shut up." He shrugged, moved to the side and cleared the table.

"I'm still working on being nice here. Would please help me out once in a while?"

"If that's your best," she placed the basket on the table and the two of them started taking out the materials and set them up, "you need to go back to school." She placed the centrifuge, a small round machine used to separate mixed chemicals into their individual components, on the table, placed a few test tubes with mixed chemicals in them and started it up.

"Give it a few minutes while I clean up the poor petri dish I accidentally dropped." She walked away and Kowalski crossed his arms with a shake of his head.

"Dropped. Yeah right." He walked over to the machine and tended to it while checking the other materials at the same time. His eyes dropped to her work and he went over to it, aching to pick up a pencil and write something down.

"See something else wrong?" He didn't look up as Selena marched back in, dumping broken glass into a bin and then walking over to the counter.

"With your handwriting? Hard to tell." He stared at the notes while she rolled her eyes and slipped back onto her stool. "But…nevermind." She leaned over the table and looked down at her papers.

"What?"

"I'm sure you can see it."

"I don't see anything wrong."

"You're missing it. It's right there."

"Seriously, what is it?"

"For the love of Newton's knickers. It's right there. I can't believe you don't see it."

"This is stupid. If you're not going to tell me, don't-"

"Fine. You forgot that you can't divide a square root with a square, because obviously they're two different things. And because of this, the entire equation's ruined. So the answer is not four the square root of five but undefined."

"So, you're telling me that my college professor's an idiot?"

"He made this?"

"Yup."

"Yes, he is an idiot. Where did he get his degree?"

"Online?" She suggested before shrugging, not noticing the grin on Kowalski's face. "I don't know and I don't care. Now what am I going to pass?"

"Undefined? It's undefined."

"No, he said he didn't want to see words. It has to be all numbers. He said he _checked_ them all."

"So, your name wouldn't be on it? How is he supposed to check this?"

"Don't get all smartass with me now. That's my job. Go do yours."

"And that would be what?"

"I need a solution, Kowalski. Give me a fucking solution." He looked down at the paper and was about to go to the next when something caught his eye.

"Wait a minute. It says you can either choose the algebraic set or the trigonometric set. Why didn't you try the trigonometric set? You're just as good in trigonometry."

"I really, really hate circles. I just hate, and I really mean hate, finding the six circular functions."

"It's a long process, but it's easy."

"Yeah, for you. I keep forgetting that tangent means sine over cosine. Um, cosine over sine? No wait, it is sine over cosine. Y over x."

"You shouldn't doubt yourself."

"I don't get it. I mean, come on, it's not like someone's gonna ask me ten years from now, 'what's your age?' and then I'll have to say, cosine 30 degrees plus tangent over sine 5 degrees, of course you'll want to hide your age, but…Polish hottie say what now?" She blinked at him in surprise, clearly taken aback.

"You think I'm hot?"

She shook her head, her face a mix of emotions, and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "I did not say that."

"You did." He looked back at Skipper and Rico, who were now looking a little interested in the two rather than the cards they have in their hands. "I've got witnesses." They quickly went back to the cards when Selena looked at them. She felt her face flame up even more and turned back to Kowalski, trying to keep a straight face.

"You said something very suspicious. I was caught off guard."

"I just said you shouldn't doubt yourself. You're pretty good in Math."

She visibly relaxed her stiff figure and narrowed her eyes at him. "Who are you and what have you done with Kowalski?"

"Relax, it's still me."

"You're complimenting me. You don't compliment me, or anyone for the matter. You have never-"

"There's always a first time. Besides, I said you're good in Math. I didn't say you were as good as I am." A ping sounded from the machine and Selena used the interruption to divert her attention to the device. She carefully took the test tubes out with gloved hands, corked them and placed each in a rack, soon filling up two racks.

"You are definitely high. Anyways," she tied the racks together, placed it in a plastic bag, squeezed the air out of them, tied them tightly, placed them in a Velcro bag and handed the bag to him. "Have fun. Don't blow up lower Manhattan."

He gave her a glare and she grinned back at him. "Very funny."

"I was aiming for it." She cooed back at him before turning to her work and ignoring him. Kowalski shook his head at her and gave the bag to Rico, who took it from him gently. He already knew long before to be careful with chemicals. There was no way he was going to be the object of Kowalski's hate again if he wasn't careful with this batch. Kowalski watched Rico carefully but turned to Skipper when the man spoke.

"All set?"

"Yes sir."

"Great." The trio headed out, with Kowalski doing his best not to snatch the bag from Rico. "It has to be the work of RK."

"With the mutilations on this body, sir? Possibly. I know the man is fond of using his beloved axe and the marks do indicate a deep incision made by an ax, which could be the murder weapon."

"Nobody else would leave the letters 'RK' on a body. It's pretty clear who we're dealing with here. In fact, why do we need to check on the body?"

"To find out who is the Rat King's next victim?" The leader gave him a look that said 'really, Kowalski?'. "The case has finally been handed over to us, maybe we should put out a warning for the whole of New York?"

"And send the citizens into a world of panic? Don't think so. This is RK we're talking about. He'll take the chance and grab a whole bunch of them as hostages."

"He's a serial killer, Skipper. With minions. We need to warn the people."

"I said no. He's attacking streets so far. We do not need him to steal people from their homes."

"Are you telling me that you would sacrifice people for the sake of saving others?"

"It's a good thing Private isn't here then." Kowalski and Rico paused and looked over at Skipper. "I'm kidding."

The other two looked at each other then back at their leader. "I don't think we find it humorous, Skipper."

"It's not a matter of humor, alright?" He told them over his shoulder as he walked away, making the other two do the same. "I was thinking of placing patrols in specific areas of the city, mainly lower Manhattan. Most sane citizens would know better than to walk about in the middle of the night."

"If they've been watching the news lately. What if they haven't?"

"Then they're ignorant dumbbells. I already had Barbie crack into the city's surveillance system for tonight's stakeout. You can stay back and work on the paperwork while we catch up on our dear friend RK."

"Ha ha, Skipper," Kowalski frowned at his friend, "very funny."

"What? You want to join in on the chase? I'm surprised you would pick a run over your precious lab."

"You just don't want to do the paperwork, Skipper."

Skipper grinned at him and patted his shoulder. "Because you're good at that. Besides," the grin was replaced by a serious expression, "I need you to supervise over Private tonight."

"Again? Why aren't you bringing him this time?"

"He's got school, remember? I don't want his friends asking what he has been doing up all night. As much as I pride my baby brother in not liking school like you do," Kowalski frowned deeply at this, "I don't want a lazy image for him. And, he has homework, hasn't he?"

"Right..."

Skipper nodded and patted him again. "Good. Rico and I can handle the run. Right, bud?" Rico looked up and nodded before turning his attention back to the tiled floor of the hallway. "I'm sure RK's careless nature would bring us more clues to his whereabouts. He's bound to slip up again."

"Well, make sure you put those iron chains on him properly. If you do get him."

"I will, Kowalski, I will. Nobody walks my streets without my permission. I still want to know how he got out of those chains last time."

"He broke them."

"I don't like your sarcasm, soldier." Kowalski resisted an eyeroll before stopping short. He slapped his forehead, and turned to Skipper, who raised a brow at him.

"I forgot to grab one more ingredient." He gestured for them to go ahead and then turned down the hallway. "I'll be right with you." Skipper shook his head at him and continued with Rico looking after Kowalski before following his leader.

* * *

Kowalski entered the room and was about to say something when he noticed that Selena wasn't there. Puzzled, he made his way over to the storage room and found it open. He was about to enter when he saw Selena staring at something in one corner.

"Selena," he walked up behind her, seeing her jump at the sound of his voice, "what are you..." His eyes trailed to the black object sitting casually on a shelf, red numbers counting down slowly. "Is that-"

"Kowalski?" Selena turned to him with a hand over her racing heart and started to push him out. "Get out! Get out now! Go!"

"That's a," he pointed to the device and looked down at her as she stopped her attempts at moving him, "are you crazy?"

"You need to go. Now."

He shook his head and moved past her to the shelf. "We can't just leave it here."

"What 'we'? No!" Selena covered her eyes, though she was peeking out through the spaces, when Kowalski gingerly picked up the object. "Kowalski," she went to his side, seeing his hands quake, "NO!" The black object slipped from his hands but her cry snapped him back to action and he caught it before it could hit the ground. "Oh gawd." Selena pressed her hand to her chest, trying to slow her heart. "Oh my gawd, Kowalski," she looked at him, breathing heavily, "have you," her voice barely came out, "gone mad?"

"Why are you whispering? It's just a time bomb." His head swung to the device and his eyes grew wide. "Galileo's Underpants!" He let go of it and stepped away.

"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!" Selena screamed out in horror before diving for it. She barely caught it and brought it to her chest, but the place seemed to have frosted over when they heard frantic ticking. She slowly looked down at it, turned it over to the timer and stared at the numbers going down at a fast rate. "Oh no."

Kowalski grabbed the object, placed it on the ground, took her arm and backed out of the storage. "Time to go."

"No," she tried to get him to let go but gave up and just pulled him over to the table, "wait!"

"Your life is in danger and you still want your homework?!" He watched as she started to shove everything into a bag.

"I-" He shoved the rest of the items in it, swung the bag over his shoulder, grabbed her hand and started dragging her out. "WAIT!" She ran over to the door and hastily took out a card tucked in a plastic slot, all the while looking over at the storage room, expecting it to blow up any second.

"You have got to be kidding me!" He marched over to her, hoisted her over his shoulder and ran, much to her shock and surprise.

"Hey, hey! I can walk! Put me down!"

"As if." They were barely near the exit when the smallest bang echoed from laboratory, followed by a rush of flames and a trail of breaking windows.


	14. Aftermath (Part 1)

**Chapter 13: Aftermath (Part 1)**

The entire building was engulfed in flames, the tips licking up to the sky. The cool night air was quickly turning warm and Skipper had to shield his face when he got too close. The intense heat was just too much to take.

"Kowalski! Selena!" He called out while he circled about, careful not to get too close to the flames. "Sound out!" The windows had blown out and were scattered in the grass and thick smoke was already snaking its way out. The man tried to look past the flames and smoke but he couldn't even see the opposite walls inside. His hopes of finding the two alive was decreasing rapidly, but his gut told him not to give up. "Kowalski! Se-"

"Skippah!" Skipper turned to Private and Barbie as the two ran to him. "Wha," the boy looked at the building in horror, "what happened here, Skippah?"

"Yeah," Barbie huffed and stood up, her eyes searching the blazing inferno, "what happened? The thing just blew up!"

Skipper faced away from the flames and tucked his shirt over his nose, already feeling his eyes water. He guided the two away from the burning disaster and only spoke once they were a good distance away. "I don't know. But Kowalski and Selena are still in there."

Private and Barbie stared at him in shock. "What?" Before anyone could do anything, Barbie dashed for the building.

"Barbie," Skipper gave Private a look before running after the blonde, "get back here!"

"Selena!" Barbie called out and stopped just feet away from the building, "SELENA!" She took another step forward, but a pair of hands grabbed her waist and pulled her back. "Hey!" She turned to face a frowning man and pushed him away. "Rico! Let me go!"

"No."

"My sister's in there. I need to help her."

"I 'no."

"Let go of me, Rico! I need to-"

Skipper glared at Barbie and held a hand toward Rico, signalling him to hold on to the lady. "Don't." Barbie stopped struggling when Rico tightened his grasp and she just glared at Skipper, who ignored her. "Rico?" The man looked away from the others, sighed and shook his head slowly. Skipper had sent him to check the other side of the building, but it looked the same as Skipper's side.

"So'ry. Not'ing. 'Th'r's no way th'y cou'd've scap'd. (Sorry. Nothing. There's no way they could've escaped.)"

"No..." Barbie shook her head and looked away, burying her face into Rico as she tried hard not to cry in front of her boss. A flash of sincerity went over Skipper's eyes but the man looked away from the two and sighed at the building. He was feeling guilty now. He had a feeling something was going to go wrong tonight, but he didn't think it would be before the actual mission. Still, there was something not right with this. _W__ho would plant a bomb in a desolate area? _Skipper shook his head and looked down at the ground. _Not your job to think about it, McGrath. Kowalski..._ "Kowalski." He turned to the others and gestured Private over. "Barbie, get the fire brigade on the line. Hurry, before the fire expands to the other buildings. Private," the boy looked up at him, awaiting his command, "we're on containment duty with Rico. That fire will not reach the other buildings, am I clear on that?"

Rico and Private nodded. "Aye sir."

"What about Selena, Skippah?" Private asked as he looked back at the buiding in fear and concern for his friend. "And Kowalski?"

"We have more pressing issues here, Private, please focus."

"My sister is important!" Barbie snapped at the man and he frowned at her, the tone in his voice growing in anger.

"In case you haven't noticed, McHale, so is my teammate. I never leave a man behind, you got that? We _will_ get back to them soon because that's what we do, but there are more people in those other buildings, and we need to find a way to contain that fire. Now get to work, McHale!" Skipper barked and Barbie jumped in slight fear, but she quickly concealed it and saluted him.

"Yes sir!" She pulled out her phone and dialed in the number, looking around to see the landscape. She was a little surprised that nobody had noticed the fire, the other buildings looked quiet and peaceful compared to the once laboratory. As she informed the person on the line of the fire, something else caught her. _How come the sirens weren't on?_ The ones that alerted people of a fire nearby. She placed the phone down and watched the other three men discuss over ways to keep the fire down. From what she could gather, they couldn't think of anything. A fire, made by explosives or not, just wasn't in their books; not even Rico's.

At this rate, the fire would soon engulf the next few buildings and perhaps the innocent victims in it. Skipper looked back at the building, then at his teammates.

"I'll be right back." He pointed over to the SUV. "Go and turn on the siren." He jogged over to the other building while the three looked at each other.

"Where do you think he's going?" Barbie asked the other two, who just shrugged. Barbie sighed and headed for the SUV with the other two in tow, already feeling the guilt come back. This wasn't supposed to happen, and if Jay found out that Selena got hurt under HER watch, well...

Rico hopped into the SUV and looked around for the switch while Barbie turned to Private. The boy was just as worried as she was, though it showed more on his face.

"Hey," Private turned to the woman, "you're the positive one here. How about a little pick me upper?"

"I...I," Private frowned sadly and looked at the ground, "I don't think..." A rusty sounding creak echoed into the night and the boy froze. "Did you hear that?" The two immediately got into attack poses, standing back to back. "What was that?"

"Don't know, don't think I want to know, but we're gonna find out."

"Well...Selena?" Private's soft voice called out and Barbie and Rico turned to see the silhouette of the Asian crawl from an open manhole and flop down on the solid ground, face down. Rico quickly flipped on the switch, letting the sound screech into the night before joining Private, Barbie and the exhausted female on the ground. "Selena, are you" Private gently flipped her around and bit down a gasp when he saw the burns on her upper body.

"Selena?" Barbie lightly nudged the female on her waist, afraid of the consequences of doing so. "Selena?" Her voice went softer and she leaned closer, just listening to her sister's faint but still there breaths of life coming from the clear plastic mask on her face and the little tank it was connected to in her hand.

* * *

_Selena looked up at the sound of the explosion and her eyes grew wide. "Kowalski!" She screamed and started looking around frantically. There was no way they were going to reach the doors in time. They were toast. Literally._

_"Stop moving already! You're slowing us down!" Selena ignored him, letting the panic settle into her form before her eyes spotted a certain door. "Selena!" Kowalski growled when Selena yanked on his hair, though the fear was evident in his voice._

_"The door! THE DOOR!"_

_"What?"_

_"THE BASEMENT," Selena tried to jump down so that she could pull them toward the door but he had a tight grip on her waist, "YOU DUNDERHEAD!"_

_"Basement?"_

_"AGH!" Selena could have twisted his head off right then, but instead, she just directed his head toward the door. "Move it, fool!" She let out another scream when she saw the start of something that looked like a fireball heading toward them. "MIKHAIL!"_

_"Wha...!" The man stared wide eyed at the fireball before shaking his head and dashing for the door. He placed his hands down on the solid metal bar and it let out a squeak as it moved down a few inches, but that was it. He tried again, to no avail but still pushed against it. __"I can't-"_

_"Kick it down, man!" The man took a few steps back, looked at the fireball and then stopped._

_"Wait, I think we can use the force of the explosion to get the door open."_

_"ARE YOU MAD?! Do you want to roast us alive? Just do it!"_

_"Wait..."_

_"Kowalski!" Selena whined and reached for the door, but she was stuck over the man's shoulder. "I don't wanna die this way!" She cried, earning a raised brow from the man before he charged for the door, just as the 'fireball' came past them. True to the plan of Kowalski's, the door was forced open with both forces and the two teetered at the top step before falling forward. Both__ let out curses and groans as they tumbled down the stone steps and landed on the cold basement floor in a pile. __"Kowalski," Selena moaned in pain and pushed on the form across her, "get off me, you dweeb."_

_"We need to stop meeting up like this..." He groaned, rolled over to his back and sat up, finally giving space for Selena's lungs to take in the air in the basement. She took in a deep breath and turned to the man beside her._

_"I get the brunt of the force most of the time, you know that?"_

_"Not unless I become your inflatable stunt bag..."_

_Selena shook her head, trying to shake away the weird lights lining her sight but paused when she spotted something wrong with the man._

_"Eek!" She pulled Kowalski down and started patting on his head._

_"Hey!" Kowalski grabbed her hands and pushed her away. "Hey! What was that for?"_

_"Your hair was on fire. It's uh, gone now."_

_"...thanks..." Selena merely nodded back at him and looked around the basement, keeping close the man in the dark room as they got to their feet. Their only light source coming from the still open door with flames licking into the room, slowly filling the room up with black smoke, though it wasn't noticeable at the moment. "What now?"_

_"Why are you asking me? I thought you knew everything?"_

_"I didn't know about the basement...how long does this run? The entire length of the school? Or just this building?"_

_"Are you serious? The basement? You don't know the basement?"_

_"Can we skip the fight for now and your smug smirk for escape possibilities?"_

_"I'm smirking alright..." She shook her head and nodded forward. "Sewers. The basement is a doorway for the sewer system. And yes, it only covers this building. About two thirds of the area, actually."_

_"And the electricity is bound to be cut off from here, so we've got to depend on our own eyesight." The man took a step forward but Selena followed right after him and latched onto his arm._

_"Uh," she licked her lips and smiled nervously, "you don't happen to have a light there, do you?" The man raised a brow at her but didn't comment and pulled out a small penlight and turned it on. A tiny line of light cut into the darkness for about a foot or so and Selena looked at it nervously, a familiar feeling coming to her. "That's it?" She squeaked out softly and felt her skin prickle a bit. She played her fear down a bit and swallowed._

_"Blame Skipper and his outrageous paranoia..." The man murmured, ignoring the female's closeness and looking ahead. "We'll need to walk inwards, don't we?"_

_Selena slipped from his arm and backed toward the fiery doorway. "Further into the darkness? Uh, well, yes, but..." With a grin, Kowalski switched off the light and walked away. "Kowalski? Kowalski!" Selena took a step in the direction she thought the man had went to._

_"Come on, Selena. I need to preserve the battery's power, in case we really need it down there." She looked back at her only source of light, gulped and took another timid step forward._

_"Kowalski? K-Kowalski? Where are you?" Her voice went down a few notches and she looked around desperately. "It's not funny, Kowalski...where are you?"_

_"On Earth?"_

_"Kowalski..." The female whined and continued looking around as her steps grew shorter but hurried. "Come on, you know I hate horror houses."_

_"I know." She heard a chuckle somewhere before her and she picked up her pace even more. She still couldn't see anything and the fire was just a speck behind her, much to her surprise._

_"Would you stop acting like this is one? Please?"_

_"This is a basement, Selena. There's nothing here but us. Just keep walking forward. You're going the right way anyway."_

_"There's rats. Maybe snakes too. From the sewers."_

_"If I stop talking, what would you do?"_

_"Don't you dare."_

_"I thought you told me many times to shut up?"_

_"I hate you. Uh..." She stopped for a while, but quickly started walking again in where she last heard the man. "Kowalski? Were you serious there?" She giggled nervously and crossed her arms over her abdomen tightly. "Because, I wasn't? Please, say something? Kowalski? Uh, Mickey?"_

_"Nice trick there." The man felt the air get squeezed out of him when something latched onto his side. "Oh..."_

_Selena loosened her grip on him and murmured. "Sorry."_

_"Skipper would be proud of your death lock hold."_

_"I said sorry."_

_"I wish I had a recorder, but you say that all the time. How about a 'Kowalski is great' this time?"_

_"If it was true." She giggled quietly and looked at the ground when she felt his glare on her. "D__on't do that again."_

_"Do what?"_

_"Kowalski..."_

_"I told you, we need to preserve the battery power of the penlight. I didn't check on it last week, and I've already gotten used to just depending on my eyes, so I don't know how long this would last."_

_"Well, how are we supposed to find the manhole cover without any lights? Do you happen to have an installed magnet in your shoes?"_

_"No, but I think you've seen the map of this place, right? You know where it is specifically?"_

_"Uh...I do know it's further North...near the wall? I think..."_

_The man sighed and pulled out the penlight again, turning it on. "I'll turn it off occasionally. Just keep an eye out."__ Then he grinned and stared ahead as he continued walking, forcing Selena to do the same. "Reminds me of the fair. Too bad there aren't any clowns here...or are there?"_

_"It's, uh a torture dungeon. The sewers used to have alligators streaming in it, before, they cleaned it out..."_

_"So, the sewers lead out to the sea too? Wait, alligators can't stay in saltwater. They're freshwater. Where did they come from?"_

_"They deliberately place alligators here. The lines here have been barred though."_

_"Wait," he paused and looked down at her incredulously, "if we find the sewers, you're telling me that we're going to be facing alligators?"_

_"Maybe?" Selena sheepishly played with her fingers. "Should we stay here?"_

_"And get burned or buried alive? Who knows if this basement of yours is capable of staying up."_

_The lady frowned and crossed her arms. "It's not my basement, okay?" Then she__ sighed and dropped her hands to her sides. "But I guess we have to keep moving. Forward is better than back."_

_He swiftly turned and hurried away. "Let's go Miss Positive."_

_"Kowalski!" Selena squealed and ran after him, quickly latching onto a solid when she bumped into something. "Kowalski?" The man sighed tiredly beside her and turned the flashlight back on._

_"It's me, Selena. Relax already."_

_"Sorry."_

_"You're still afraid of the dark, aren't you?"_

_"It's not the dark, okay? How many times do I have to tell you that?"_

_"Right...like something's going to pop down from the ceiling and scare us. Very classic horror movie scene."_

_"Maybe. Can you keep the flashlight down, Kowalski? We're looking for a manhole cover here. Not a door marked 'exit' in neon red."_

_"Do I hear sarcasm?"_

_"When you're me, you'll need it."_

_"Please. When you face off with Skipper, you need it to disguise your findings of Skipper's lack of understanding of certain things."_

_"Meanie."_

_"Look who's talking. And what about your brother? I haven't heard from him. At least from you."_

_"What brother?" The man stopped yet again, shocked._

_"You don't remember your own brother?"_

_"I have a brother?"_

_"Selena," he shook his head, not believing what he was hearing, "he was the whole reason you were in the horror house in the first place."_

_"Are you serious? I don't have a brother. Unless you count Barbie when she's not all girly and pink. And I've never gone out in public with Barbie in my entire life. We were never close." The two stared at each other before the female shivered slightly and shook her head. "This is getting weird. I don't have a brother, Kowalski. If I did, I wouldn't just leave him."_

_"No wonder you didn't talk about him...you don't even remember him. My father must have made you forget about him."_

_Selena sighed and looked at the ceiling. "I have a brother?"_

_"Older brother."_

_"Do you," she raised a brow at him, feeling a little hopeful, "know what he looks like then?"_

_"Actually, I don't remember."_

_"Oh..." She rolled her eyes and looked away. "That's great."_

_"Funny. I can't recall his name either."_

_"But you know I have a brother?"_

_He ignored her sarcastic tone and continued to muse. "It starts with an 'a'."_

_"A brother named 'A'. What is this, a lame TV show?" Before he could retort, she shook her head and started tugging him along. "Let's just go, Kowalski."_

_After a few moments of silence, Selena licked her lips and looked up at the man. __"Do you mind answering a question?"_

_"About what?"_

_"I just remembered that you were part of the homecoming committee. Did you-"_

_"Don't even. I don't know how I got there, I just did. I hate events like that. They goggle over me like a bunch of pathetic fan girls. What is the whole point of it anyways? You don't win anything but a stupid plastic crown and five minutes of fame."_

_"For fun? Mostly girly fantasies."_

_"Right, getting your dress torn apart while they drown you in the fountain is a girly fantasy of yours. That's very you, Selena."_

_Though he couldn't see her that moment, he could almost feel her mood darken drastically. __"Focus on the manhole, Mikhail."_

_"Don't call me that. My name is Kowalski."_

_"Don't bring that up then."_

_"You started it."_

_"Well, you have no right to barge into my life like that." The man stopped abruptly at that and turned to her, shrugging her hand off._

_"And I get no thanks for saving you? Nothing at all?"_

_"You didn't have to..."_

_"You were crying, madam. They were still throwing jabs, and cups, at you. And I believe a certain father figure would have my hide if I didn't."_

_"Jay wouldn't kill you. Your father was still alive that time. He wouldn't dare. You know what your father would do to me if Jay ever touched you."_

_"If I didn't do it, Doris will murder me. She'll go on about how I'm the male and I should be helping, blah blah blah, I don't care what she says."_

_"You have to stop putting me as an obligation. I refuse-"_

_"To have a little help? Is that so wrong, Selena?"_

_"I refuse for people to slave over something that isn't worthwhile, alright?"_

_"My father told you that, didn't he?"_

_"I was ten and gullible. But it's the truth. If I was really important, they wouldn't be picking on me, would they? They wouldn't destroy my dress, or dump me in the fountain, or pretend I was just gum stuck to their shoes. Am I wrong there, Mikhail?"_

_"That's my father's name. Stop calling me that."_

_"No. If you think I'm calling you your father's son, then so be it. My choices stand as they are, Mikhail. From here on out, I will never call you by that name you have decided to give yourself. Your name is Mikhail, and I will call you that. Now," she snatched the flashlight from him and continued forward, "let's find that manhole."_

_"You can't," he grabbed onto her arm tightly and spoke through gritted teeth, "do that."_

_"We need to get out of here, Mikhail."_

_"No," his hold on her tightened, "you can't call me that. I refuse. Don't EVER, call me that, Selena."_

_"Did you just," she looked up at him with wide eyes blinking behind her glasses, "threaten me?" He turned his eyes from the blackness around them and glared down at the lady._

_"I'm warning you."_

_"Why?"_

_"Don't," his voice came into a hiss near her ear, "ever call me that bastard's name."_

_"Mikhail!" She winced inwardly and tried to get his hand off. "Let me go!"_

_"Promise me, Selena."_

_She stopped struggling and glared back at him. "NO!"_

_"I..." He suddenly trailed off and blinked in surprise. "__Do you smell that?" He stood to his full height, let her go and looked behind them. Selena frowned slightly and rubbed the sore spot while she too followed his gaze. __"The smoke's coming in too fast, and there's no windows around here. We need to find that manhole fast." He pushed her to the ground and dropped down beside her. __He pocketed the flashlight and started moving forward on his hands and knees. "We crawl. I'm sure we can feel the cover with our hands." Selena sighed and followed after him. It wasn't long before they felt the metal of the manhole cover. Kowalski pulled out the light and shone the light down on the cover. He gave the penlight to Selena, who held it over the hatch while he twisted the wheel._


	15. Aftermath (Part 2)

**Chapter 13: Aftermath (Part 2)**

"Kowalski's ox'n m'sk? (Kowalski's oxygen mask?)" Rico tapped the tiny tank in Selena's hand and looked over at her. The female looked at him through half lidded eyes that were lined with tears, probably due from the thick smoke, and nodded. She took the mask off her face and placed it beside her.

_"Die! DIE!" Selena screamed as she jumped onto him, sending the two of them falling to the side._

_He groaned in pain from the impact and sat up, only to be tackled down again._

_"You'll die!" Both hands raised above her head, she brought them down, letting the scattered penlight catch the silver heading for his head._

She blinked her eyes rapidly, took off her glasses and pushed herself up in a sitting position. She wiped her tear brimmed eyes with the back of her hand and noticed a pair of boots running toward them.

_"Selena!" He caught her hands, snatched the knife easily out of her hands and tossed it aside. He pushed her off and scrambled away. __"Selena..." His eyes found her crazed and glazed ones and he placed his hands on her arms, keeping them pinned to her sides before she could do anything else. "You need to calm down. Please, wake up. You need to wake up."_

"Where's Kowalski?" Selena opened her eyes fully and looked up at Skipper, who was already back at their side. "Why isn't my man with you?"

_"I," she suddenly blinked and stared at the ground, "I'm sorry." She shrugged him away and he dropped his hands as a tear dropped from her eye. She wiped it away quickly and turned away from him. "I'm sorry. I don't know what happened." He didn't answer and she paused and turned back to him. "Mikhail, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry." She curled up into a ball, hugging her knees tightly and sobbing into the crook in between her legs._

_She felt a hand caress her neck gently and she raised her head slowly. "You thought I was him again, didn't you?" She looked up at him and felt the hand move to her face. She swallowed a lump and took his hand away from her face._

_"I'm sorry, Mikhail. I don't know what happened. I'm so messed up. I can't believe I drifted off again. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it. I don't know what's happening to me." She held in a sob, closed her eyes and bit down on her trembling lip, her hands making a mess in her hair. "Maybe I do need to go check with Melman."_

_He sighed deeply, took in a deep breath and ended up coughing. She placed a hand lightly on his shoulder before using it to pat his back._

_"Mikhail?"_

_"The," he coughed again and shook his head as his eyes started to water, "the smoke. It's filling up the room already." He pulled her close and used an arm to cover his nose. He took out a small oxygen mask out from his overcoat and gave it to her._

_"No, you need it." With a frown, he grabbed the mask from her, slipped it over her head despite her protests and handed her a tiny tank. "Mikhail."_

_He took her free hand and pulled her to the manhole cover. "We need to go."_

_He struggled to open the manhole cover again, coughing every once in a while. When he couldn't even turn the wheel, she grabbed it and helped him. They got the thing open and was met with the moist cold air from the sewers. It was just as dark as the room, with installed lights lighting the way. Selena grinned at this and turned to Kowalski. But her happiness dropped when the man's eyes drooped close. Without warning, he tumbled through the opening head first. His head made a resounding crack on the concrete and she shivered at the creepy but familiar sound._

"Selena?"

She pushed herself up in a sitting position, took off the mask and her glasses and wiped her teary eyes.

"He's in the sewers. He couldn't handle the smoke, fell and passed out. I couldn't carry him back." Skipper just stared at her, the skepticism clear on his face. Selena groggily got to her feet and handed the oxygen mask and tank to Skipper. "Look, you need to help me carry him back. I can't do it on my own, but I can show you the way."

_"Mikhail!" Her voice was muffled through the mask but she didn't waste a second in climbing down and running toward him. "No." She placed a hand on his neck, her form flooding with relief when she felt the life giving beat. A sob escaped from her and she cradled the man's head. "Thank Isaac you're alive." She gave him a light kiss on the head, placed his head gently on the ground and got to her feet after grabbing the penlight from him. "I'll be back." She backed away, took one last look at him then headed down the tunnel._

"We need to go," she closed his hand over the mask, "NOW. Please, Skipper."

"I'll go." Private stepped forward with a determined expression. "I can handle him." Selena and Barbie stared at the boy, both thinking the same thing. _How can a child carry a man almost twice his weight and height? _"I can do this, Skippah. You know I can. Besides, you guys need to stay and help put out the fire."

"Private," Selena started with a frown but Skipper held up a hand. The lady watched in surprise as Skipper gave Private the mask and patted his shoulder with a grin.

"I know you can, bud. Make me proud." Private grinned back, saluted him and jumped down into the sewers. "Rico," Skipper looked over at the man and woman waiting by, "and Barbie, I need you to go with them. Make sure nothing else goes wrong. You know what's in those sewers. I can handle things here." Rico and Barbie nodded and hurried down the manhole. Skipper was about to walk away when a hand stopped him. He turned to Selena, who let go of him and gave him a small smile.

"I swear I don't have anything against him. I didn't plan this."

"I know. It's just déjà vu here." She spotted the flash of sadness going through his eyes before he looked away from her.

"You miss Hans, don't you?" Her smile grew when he turned back to her with an unsure smile.

"No. I'm just glad I decided to save you instead of him."

"I still think it's a stupid decision, since you lost Hans because of me. Two boys fighting over one girl isn't cool, you know." He chuckled and shook his head.

"Doesn't matter now than it should then. He's just someone in the past. Just get my lieutenant in one piece."

She grinned and saluted him playfully. "Yes sir." Selena took one look at the building before joining the others in the sewers. The second her feet touched the ground, she turned to the three waiting for her and gestured down one end. They were almost there when a thin trail of smoke floated in the air above them. Selena looked up at it briefly, put on a burst of speed and dropped down beside the unmoving figure on the ground. "Mikhail?" She called softly and checked his vitals again, satisfied with the results.

"This is creepy." Barbie commented as she looked around the dimly lit sewers. "I didn't know this existed. How did you even find this place, Selena?" The Asian didn't look up as she walked over to the ladder and climbed up, despite the smoke billowing into her face. She reached up and closed the cover before jumping down, coughing.

"Oh gawd..." She bent over her knees and took in the smoke free air before standing up and nodding when she saw Private and Rico carrying Kowalski. "Let's go." She walked past them and hurried back.

"Selena?" A frown made its way to her face but she put on a blank expression when Barbie appeared in her peripheral vision. "How did you know this place?" Her mind was still struggling with previous events that she had a hard time listening to Barbie.

"What's it to you?"

"Did, somebody, bring you here? I doubt anybody you know would show you this."

"None of your business, McHale."

"It's not on the maps." Her sister didn't reply; just continued walking. "Selena."

"Shut. Up."

"I'll tell Jay."

Selena stopped abruptly and Barbie had to take a step back to avoid crashing into her. "I'm very tempted to throw you in." Barbie didn't have to ask to know that she was talking about the rushing river of sludge just inches away from them.

"Well, you're a very great sister."

"Never said I was. Never am. Didn't know you had such high expectations. In fact, this must be our first real formal conversation."

"Just tell me already. It's not going to kill you."

"It will."

"Excuse me?" Instead of replying, Selena started walking again. "I'm not five!" Barbie shouted after her with a glare before chasing her sister, Rico and Private still at her heels. "Stop treating me like this. I demand to know what's going on. Who's threatening you?"

"Look in a mirror."

"I'm serious. We've never had a problem like this since you were eighteen. You're always pushing me away, but this is worse. I am not the dirt you wanted me to be, okay? Stop it."

"Callie." Barbie noted the worry, concern and fear in her tone, but she ignored it and continued.

"Why can't you trust me?"

"Why can't _you_ trust me?"

"You don't answer a question with a question!"

"Stop acting like a brat and I will stop it."

"Selena!"

"Callie!" The other spoke in a mocked tone, adding fuel to the fire.

"I don't even know what happened at the institution! Stop treating me like this!"

"You don't want to know."

"Why did they take you twice? They never do that. In fact, nobody comes out of that place alive. What makes you so special?"

"That's enough."

"Is it because of Jay? Did he-"

"No. Not him. I wouldn't let him."

"Kowalski?" Selena merely shook her head and picked up her pace. "What connection could you possibly have with that evil building? Why would they take you twice and NOT have someone come after you after all these years? Wait, is that why you're living in the hotel room instead of the apartment? You do have someone on your tail, don't you?"

"I don't see why you have to know. It's none of your business."

"Tell me, or I'll hack the system and find out myself."

"And risk getting yourself in jail?" Selena pondered it for a while, but it seemed to be faked since she just shrugged right after. "Be my guest. It's your life."

"I thought you were the wiser one."

"I don't see how this is in any way connected to the bombing."

"It could be if they were trying to kill you. Why would anyone kill you? You've never done anything wrong your whole life."

"Why wouldn't they kill the _only_ living victim of the institution? Why wouldn't they take the chance to murder the chief officer's daughter? Why wouldn't anyone kidnap the only girl who knows Mikhail Kowalski Dean Bennett Junior's deepest, darkest, _dirtiest_ secrets?"

"You know everything about him?"

Selena rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "I sure know why he _loves_ his father to bits." She rolled her eyes again when she spotted the confusion on her face. "I was being sarcastic. He hates him to hell."

Barbie blinked before a frown overtook her features. "I know that. I just..." Barbie sighed loudly and pouted at Selena. "Would you just tell me who has been threatening you?"

"I said that's enough." The words came out angrily, but it did not faze the blonde, who placed a hand on her shoulder, forcing her to stay.

"I'm not going to stop until I find out."

Selena turned around and opened her mouth, about to reply, when a groan interrupted her. The two girls turned to Kowalski, but the man was still out cold. "Might be sooner than you think." Barbie turned back to Selena, who was now staring at her. The blonde blinked repeatedly and mirrored her when she took a step forward. "Much sooner." Barbie screamed as her foot stepped back on nothing, feeling herself fall backwards. Two hands took hold of her shirt and pulled her back easily. She found herself staring at the smirk before it turned out into laughter. The blonde shrunk a bit, holding onto what was left of her self-esteem as she was tossed aside. "Pathetic piece of..." She trailed off with an unsettling smirk before walking away, leaving Barbie fuming after her.

* * *

The man groaned in pain and gripped his head while sitting up, unaware of where he was at the moment, only feeling the weird sensation of 'floating'.

"Mikhail?" His senses went back to normal and he turned, all too quickly much to his dislike, to the lady. "Are you alright?" He shook his head of the memories flooding in and glared at her.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

Innocent reddish brown eyes almost made him take back his harsh statement, until the burning building behind her reminded him of why he said it. "What?"

"You could've died in there." He shook his head when he heard his squeaky voice and bit deeply into his lip as his voice went a few notches lower. "That's why you didn't put up a fight. You'd hate to get in trouble, but you didn't defy me."

"Mikhail, it's really nothing to worry about. I-"

"No, you could have died in there! What were you think-" He burst into a coughing fit and bent over to the side. Selena frowned deeply and gestured to herself, not looking concerned over the man's condition.

"Do I look like the bomb squad, Mikhail? How the heck was I supposed to know it was a bomb?"

"No," he threw his hands to the side angrily and glowered deeply at her, "no. You knew! When you dropped the dish, that's what you saw, didn't you? You saw the bomb, but you didn't tell us. I thought you said you weren't suicidal." He fired the last statement at her angrily but she just stared at him with a raised brow.

"And then what? You were going to defuse it? It's not simple wiring, Bennett. It's a time bomb. Those things are completely unstable. Its a miracle it didn't blow up when you picked it up. In fact," Selena ran a hand sharply across his face and sat back on her heels with a glare, "what were YOU thinking, idiot?" Kowalski blinked in shock with a hand covering his stinging cheek. "You were the one who endangered everyone here. We're lucky it didn't blow up in your face and fucking send your asshole brain to the other side. Why did I think it would survive? Because that's the only thing you protect! Jackass!" He dropped his hand to the side and stared at her.

"That was still a stupid move. What possible solution could you get from handling it yourself?"

"I don't know, less chances of death? It was better than picking up the fucking bomb, Kowalski. You even fucking dropped it and-"

"I caught it before it could hit the ground."

"Where did your brain go then? To Neverland? Did you get coffee while you were out? 'Cause you need it to wake up!" Kowalski shook his head in exasperation and pushed himself up into a sitting position.

"Rico is our whole bomb squad, Selena. HE COULD HAVE DEFUSED IT."

"How would I know that? Do I look like I know everything like you do?" The man just glared at her. "Time." She said slowly with both hands held out. "Bomb. An unstable device that could go off any second. It doesn't matter if it has a stupid timer. If the timer doesn't work, the bomb could either explode or stay idle until something else triggers it. It's a bomb. That is what bombs do. They have their trigger activated, and boom. There goes your entire future. Capisce?"

"I am not a child. Stop talking to me like that."

Selena ran her tongue over her mouth and crossed her arms.

"Oh really, dunderhead? Why'd you handle the bomb like it was your first time holding one?"

"I panicked, _okay_? Was that so wrong?" Selena slapped her face and mumbled into her hand before sighing and crossing her arms.

"You dropped the bomb, Kowalski. You dropped the stupid bomb. Twice."

"I caught it, alright!?" His voice was becoming scratchy now but he continued angrily, not noticing the tone. "Get over it already!"

"Absolute not. Not when you could've exploded the entire campus."

"It didn't. It was miniature."

"Size doesn't matter. Do you remember Fat Man and Little Boy? Do those devices look like they can destroy entire cities, because that's what they did." She raised her hands and curled them like she was going to strangle something. "I can kill you right now, man! What were you thinking?"

"My point here is what were you thinking. You were just standing there staring at the thing like a stupid monkey."

"We're all primates, you dumbass. Make up something good and really insulting here." She rolled her eyes and shook her head before turning back to him with a sneer. "What's it to you what I do anyway? I'm just another statistic compared to you. Besides, Jay knows what I'm doing here."

"Suicidal? Oh, I'm sure he knows you're suicidal, you liar. And don't act like I didn't know what happened in the sewers back there. I remembered everything. How did you get from thinking of escape to _him_? You keep telling me I'm nothing like him, but every move I make with you is reminding you of him."

"No. That's not-"

"Everything I do reminds you of him, Selena. Can you say no to that?"

"Well, I-"

"See? I am trying so hard not to act like a jerk around you but you make it so hard with what you do to yourself. And I think I'm making your condition worse."

"That's not-"

"I know it's my fault, and I'm trying so hard not to care, but it's like you don't even care what happens to you!" The Asian closed her mouth and stared at him. "It's like you want me to do that for you!"

"No."

"Don't fucking tell me 'no'. There is something else going on in that brain of yours. What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding anything." She murmured quietly, still sitting and staring at him quietly.

"Then why the fuck, after all these years, did you think sending Kyle thousands of miles away is going to help anyone? What about Barbie? Or Marlene? What about them? Tell me what you plan to do, Miss Almighty. What's this great plan of yours that's going to save all three of them from whatever it is that you've gotten yourself into? Why is it, that you love staying in a hotel room more than with your friends when I know you hate being alone?"

"I didn't ask you to evaluate what I do. I never asked you to help me."

"You don't have to. I always have to insert myself into your life, whether I liked it or not."

"Yeah, sure," she rolled her eyes again and waved him away while she picked up her bag and the card, "whatever." She paused abruptly when she saw the name on the hard paper, "what the hell is Edward's name doing here? I'm supposed to be on guard duty."

"Wha-who?" She didn't notice the shift in his expression as she rolled her eyes yet again and gestured her hands about.

"I knew that custodian was lazy. He can be all strict with his mouth but he can't even do a simple change in records. Great." She dropped her arms to her sides in exasperation. "They're probably going to blame Edward for the incident. Heck, they'll probably charge him with it. I need to talk to Jay." She looked at the others and pointed at them with the card. "And you need to go rest. Complete bed rest, you hear me? I'll check up on you." Selena heaved her bag over her shoulder and started to walk away but Kowalski grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Can I see that?" She raised a brow at him but handed over the card. He took it and scanned the contents, his eyes remaining on the line 'Edward Jefferson, guard duty'. "So, this guy was supposed to be doing guard duty?" She took the card from him with a frown and stuffed it into her bag.

"Yesss...He's not responsible, okay?"

"Of course not."

"Really?" She frowned in suspicion, crossed her arms and looked up at him. "That was easy. Did you happen to plan this by the way?"

"Why would I want to blow up the laboratory? If I wanted to get rid of one, it would be the ones upstate. Where my _fellow_ scientists are. Not a mediocre school laboratory."

She watched him for a while before shrugging casually. "Beats me. I'm just curious about your curiosity." _She thinks I'm jealous...what a thought. Jealous of myself._

"Any theories then?" He gestured to the building, still speaking with a scratchy voice. She frowned at this, but didn't comment.

"Like I said, beats me. Terrorist?"

"A time bomb in a school laboratory? Why not the central area of the school itself?"

"I'd say it's genius, though the explosion was pretty small. Enough to engulf the entire building, with the added explosive chemicals in there. This was carefully planned. It's like the person wanted the building and possibly the occupants to blow up."

"My thoughts exactly." Kowalski mumbled with a grim look.

The lady shrugged, got to her feet and walked away. "Update me."

"Wait," she paused and turned to him, "how come you didn't notice it before? I need a possible time of placement."

"You can't exactly find good help nowadays. I'd say the person before me is a complete ignorant."

"How so?"

"I found him sleeping on the table. It was fun kicking him off though."

"You were sleeping too. Someone could have sneaked in during your shift."

"Remember when I said I kicked the guard off the table? I forgot to mention that I had to hide out for an estimated eighteen minutes from him before I went for my shift."

"So basically, it's anytime between forever when the bomb was planted."

"Time bomb, Kowalski. Those things don't have a definite time, even with a timer, no matter how much movies you watch, and if it moved, the timer might have gone forward or back, as demonstrated earlier when the bomb fell."

"You're telling me that someone built the bomb in the laboratory?"

"You saw how big that bomb is. How long would it take for someone to build one that big? Do you think it's a mere simpleton? Maybe a fellow genius? The mechanics of the device were not simple, in case you're wondering. I got a closer look at it, but didn't touch it. I'd say the person had to be good in mechanical engineering to build something so complex yet seemingly simple."

"You're sure about this?"

The lady stared at him with her mouth open before shaking her head and walking away.

"Wait!"

"What is it?"

"Are you _sure_ about this? This can't be a hypothesis of yours, is it?"

"Does light pass through a concave mirror at the focal point?"

"Obviously. That's where it always passes through."

"You have my answer."

"Selena."

"What is it now?"

"Our discussion isn't over."

"It is," Selena said firmly with a pointed glare at him, "because it has nothing to do with you. Stay out of it."

She was about to turn and walk away when he called out again. "Wait." The lady practically threw her bag down and whirled around.

"WHAT?"

"I can't..." He trailed off and dropped back on the grass with a hand grasping his throat.

"Mikhail?" She dropped back down beside him. He merely closed his eyes and rolled his head away from her and the sight of the still ongoing fire behind them, the flashing lights of help arriving the last thing he saw.


	16. Goodbye (Part 1)

**Chapter 14: Goodbye (Part 1)**

"You know something?" Selena frowned and slapped her rag on the counter. "I don't care." She crossed her arms and glared at the man standing before her. "And didn't I tell you that you're on bed rest?"

"You're not the boss of me," Kowalski scoffed, copying her stance, "and you're not a doctor."

"Dag gone it, Mikhail. You're as stubborn as a jackass."

"And so are you, but do I go around accusing you like that? No, no I don't."

Skipper sighed and dropped his head into his hands as Selena replied in a not so decent way.

"Yeah," he looked up at Marlene as the brunette placed two Styrofoam cups and joined the empty seat next to him, "I know. It's annoying."

Skipper gestured to the two fighting by the counter. "Please tell me they're going to stop sometime soon." Marlene had her head propped up on a hand and was looking over at the two before turning back to him.

"Don't count on it." Skipper sighed, picked up the cup and was about to take a sip when he paused, looked down at the black liquid and raised a brow at Marlene.

"What's this?" Marlene looked over at him with a raised brow of her own.

"Don't know what coffee looks like?" Skipper rolled his eyes and lowered the cup from his mouth.

"I mean, what are you doing giving me coffee?"

"I can't give you coffee?"

"Answer me, woman." Marlene frowned, placed her hands on the table and completely turned to him.

"Are you always this demanding?"

"Depends on who I'm speaking to." He shook the cup a bit. "Did you poison this?"

Marlene's jaw dropped in shock before she shook her head. "You're unbelievable." She slapped her hands on the table, picked up both Styrofoam cups and walked away. Skipper got up and grabbed her arm, holding her in place.

"Wait." He took a cup from her and looked up at her. "This is mine." Marlene placed her cup not so gently on the table and crossed her arms. "What's your problem now?" Skipper asked her after taking a sip, watching her tense up and frown.

"My problem? What is _your_ problem? Is it so hard to do something normal for once, Skipper?"

Skipper took another sip before speaking. "What are you talking about?"

"It's simple, really. I offer coffee, you accept it, we sit down and we talk. No assassins, no poison, no missions, no random whatevers. Is that really so hard, Skipper?"

"Is that girl talk for discreetly asking me out on a date?"

"Oh gawd." Marlene groaned and threw her hands down. "You're insufferable!" She marched away angrily with fists by her sides before a chuckle and a hand stopped her.

"I'm kidding!" Skipper pulled her back as he placed his cup on the table and she glared at him moodily. "Come on. I was just kidding." She huffed and looked away. "That's adorable." Marlene's eyebrows furrowed as she turned to him, though a certain shade was crossing over her. "Okay, sorry. This is about last time, isn't it? Let's just say I was in a bad mood back then, okay? Can we forget about that?" Eyes narrowed in suspicion at his claim.

"Bad mood?"

Skipper held up his hands in surrender. "I'm also in no mood to discuss it," he smiled genuinely, dropped a hand to the chair and gestured her into it, "so if you would please join me for breakfast, milady?"

"I don't have a choice, do I?" Marlene murmured under her breath as she settled into the chair and reluctantly picked up her cup.

"Don't think so." Skipper answered with a grin, knowing full well that it wasn't directed to him. He picked up his cup and took another sip before sending Marlene a smile. "Did you make this?"

"Yes." The brunette continued in the same tone, watching her coffee instead of drinking it. The smile faltered on Skipper's face and he watched her.

"Marlene, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"You know," Skipper turned away, keeping his eye on her while taking another gulp, "you've been so hostile to me lately."

"Me?" Marlene placed a hand on her chest with an incredulous look on her face. "Hostile? You're talking to me about being _hostile_?"

"Yes, I believe I am."

Marlene shook her head in disbelief and looked away. "You're unbelievable. Just, unbelievable."

He leaned forward and placed a hand over hers, making sure that he had her complete attention before speaking. "You wanted to talk, so talk. What's bothering you?" She stared at him for a while before sighing and looking over at Selena. Skipper followed her gaze and back to her when she sighed again. "Well?"

"I kinda have the same thoughts as Kowalski."

"Which would be?"

Marlene shook her head. "I really shouldn't be saying this. I mean this is my best friend, right? She wouldn't do anything, wrong, would she?"

Skipper stared at her, his face a blank mask. Marlene bit her lip nervously and tapped her fingers on the table, waiting for him to reply. Just when she thought she was gong to break and burst out into random sentences, the man sighed and leaned back. "I'm not sure, Marlene. I mean," he shrugged and looked over at the two still arguing, but quietly now, "I don't know how the female works. It was just a day together after the rescue and then I had her shipped back." She was glad for his honesty, but at the same time a little upset that was all she could get to a solution. "Are you still hung on the desertion?" The woman smirked softly and nodded once. "Look, can we just forget about that and start over?" Without waiting for a reply, Skipper stuck out his hand to her. "Name's Skipper McGrath. You can call me Skipper." She eyed the hand suspiciously and Skipper couldn't help adding something else. "Don't worry, I don't bite."

"Well," she looked away with a pout, "I do."

"Well," he countered in the same tone with a heart melting grin, "I knew you worked at an animal shelter, but I didn't know you were one yourself. Shall I call animal control?"

"Very funny."

"I live for it."

"Yeah right."

"What? I can't be funny?"

"You call that funny? That was just lame."

"Alright, Miss Comedian. What do you have?"

She wriggled her nose and stuck her tongue out at him. "You can't even give me a good nickname."

Skipper sighed and held his hands up. "You're right. I'm horrible. I can't make you laugh. I give."

"Just like that?"

"Yep." He nodded. "What's my punishment?"

"Are you serious?" He nodded again, trying hard not to laugh at the incredulous expression on her face. "Seriously?"

Skipper frowned. "Marlene..." He was about to add something else, possibly regarding his 'soldier's word', when she giggled. He resisted the urge to laugh along with her and put on a confused look. "What's so funny?" She merely shook her head and placed her hands over her mouth in a gesture to contain her laughter. "Marlene?" He called gently, still confused though there was a hint of amusement in it.

"I can't believe it!" She dropped her hands to her stomach and held it. "I did it!"

"Did what?"

"I just did!"

"Uh hmm." He nodded rubbing his jaw before pulling his mouth into a smirk. "You did, did you?" She paused when she saw the look on his face and blinked.

"What just happened?"

"You laughed, dollface."

It took a few seconds before the Californian's eyes grew wide and she gasped. "You tricked me! I really thought..."

"I know." He grinned again, almost making her forget about her humiliation. "But it was worth it. I've never heard you laugh before. It's adorable." He was rewarded with the sight of the blushing female gingerly sipping her coffee with her head bowed.

* * *

Selena sighed and ran a hand through her hair, twirling it at the ends. "You are a pacifist. Selena, you are a pacifist. Don't kill him. You can't kill him. A pacifist doesn't kill people."

"Are you alright?"

She snapped up at Kowalski and snarled. "Of course I'm alright, idiot." He shrugged and sat down, causing Selena to slap her face and sit down with a groan.

"You sure you're alright?" She looked up at him slowly, stuck her tongue out and dropped her head to the table. "Alright. If you say so." She mumbled something and hugged her head.

"Some," everyone turned to the door as Kyle stumbled in with Andy leaning into her as he struggled to stand, "somebody help!" The boy looked like a horde of elephants had decided to go through him.

"What the." Selena gasped as she stared at the boy, the same reaction coming from Kowalski.

"Private?" Skipper spoke under his breath, blinked in surprise and got to his feet, along with Marlene, who was equally as shocked as the man. But she was puzzled by what she heard Skipper say. Marlene frowned at this, but she got distracted as Skipper marched over to the two.

The boy hobbled in with Kyle in tow, refusing any help from her now, before giving Skipper a meek smile. "'Elo." Even that single word was hard to say as his chest heaved. He looked only moments from collapsing, which happened just as Rico and Barbie ran in after the two. Kyle let out a scream as Andy dropped to the side, caught by Rico.

"Over here!" Selena waved the rag to a booth after clearing the table she and Kowalski were currently at.

"I'm fine." Andy mumbled, annoyed, as he was placed on the table. He tried to move away while ignoring the pain shooting through him but Selena held him down. "I said I'm fine."

"Cold compression, man. A kit too." Selena patted Rico on the chest, and the man dashed off.

"No, wait-" Andy tried getting up again but Selena leaned forward and stared at him.

"You listen here. I know pain when I see it, and I know you're in it. So shut it and lay down."

"But-"

"It's not a suggestion, kid." Andy opened his mouth to retort, but Selena silence him with a glare. He laid his head down and watched quietly as Selena examined his torso and stomach. "I don't see a reason to call the hospital. No signs of internal bleeding, that's for sure. Slight bruising," Selena spoke up, "but otherwise fine."

Andy rolled his eyes. "I'm telling you, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy." Selena raised a brow at him.

"How's that?"

"They were holding me upside down. Not a good feeling."

"I hear you."

"Can I-" Andy sat up but Selena placed a hand on him before he could jump off.

"No, you cannot. I refuse. You look horrible."

"Thank you." The boy replied sarcastically and glared at her. She ignored him, grabbed the kit from Rico and started pulling out the needed supplies.

Skipper was frowning all this time and the carefree man Marlene had talked to minutes was gone. In his place was the authoritarian figure New York had come to respect and fear. "What happened, boy?"

Andy looked over at Kyle, whose gaze dropped in shame. This caught Selena's attention and she glanced at Kyle from the corner of her eyes, though she didn't stop tending to Andy.

The boy turned back to Skipper. "We had a run-in with a few friends..."

"And then what? You had a _friendly_ tussle?"

"Something like that..." The boy muttered and looked away from him.

The man's eyes grew smaller and his expression more firm. "Where?"

Barbie shook her head and crossed her arms. "Don't bother. It's already taken care of." Selena looked up at that but she didn't say anything as she placed the ice pack from Rico on Andy's left eye, which had started to sport a bruise. She placed his hand over it and let go of the pack when she was sure he had a hold on it.

"Kyle." The redhead didn't look up when Marlene placed a hand on her shoulder. "You alright, sweetheart?"

"No," Andy answered for her angrily, gripping the ice pack tightly, "she's not."

"Andy," the girl lifted her head with a sigh and shook her head, "I,"

"They were touching her, those bas," Kyle slapped his arm.

"Andy!"

"Ow..." The boy groaned and held his arm, placing the ice pack there instead.

"I'm sorry..." The girl mumbled softly, blinking her eyes a bit before looking away.

Andy's frown dropped and he turned to her. "Kyle?" His expression softened. "Kyle, are you..."

"I'm s-sorry."

"It's," the boy uncomfortably looked away, "it's fine."

"But it's my fault!"

"Explain, then," the two turned to Selena, who was watching them intently, "how this is your fault."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have run off. If I didn't, Andy never would have followed me and gotten into the fight with the boys and-"

"Kalina." The redhead blinked up at Kowalski, who had spoken in a stern tone. "That's enough. He's fine and you're here. That's the end of story."

Selena's mouth curled into a low sneer and she looked to the side. "It's the end alright..." Kyle licked her lips and dared a step forward, watching her guardian.

"Are you, are you mad?"

"Oh, I'm not mad." The Asian started off calmly before her eyes darkened. "I'm pissed off."

"I'm sorry."

"I am sick and tired of making sure you're safe, but you don't seem to appreciate it. If you do want to die, please tell me so I can just stop. No more caring, no more looking after you, and best of all, no more," she took a step forward as the coldness of her tone seemed to seep into Kyle, "extra," another step causing her to take one back unconsciously, "baggage."


	17. Goodbye (Part 2)

**Chapter 14: Goodbye (Part 2)**

The silence was deafening in the room, and combined with the anger emitting from Selena, Kyle was beyond uncomfortable. Close to tears was more the feeling, but she fought hard against them since she knew that the lady before her didn't like them.

"Wh-at?" Kyle berated herself when she heard her voice crack. There goes any chances of showing that she was strong. More so when she took an involuntary step back as Selena leaned in.

"You heard me. You're very good at listening into somebody else's conversation, you know. I don't think what I said missed you."

"You're lying. I don't know why you're doing this, but you're not going to just send me away. I can handle it, whatever it is you're hiding."

"I believe it's out of your reach, kid."

"I'm not a little kid anymore! You can't tell me what to do."

"Of course not." Even though she had used a calm tone, it still surprised Kyle to no ends. "Your mother will." She held her hands up casually. "I'm just the guardian."

"Excuse me?" The redhead's eyes turned to angry slits before she looked around for this so called 'mother'.

"She's not exactly happy," Kyle turned back to Selena, but the lady wasn't talking to her, "but I think she'll change her mind when she sees you." She was talking to the little device in her hand, or more specifically, the woman on the other end.

"What are you doing?" The lady merely ignored her and walked past her, toward the door.

"Sure, send them in. There's nobody here."

Kyle blinked and looked back at the others, who were just as confused as she was. "Selena?" She paused right before she could smack into the female, who was staring at the door.

"Selena," Barbie stepped forward, her eyes wide and focused on the doors, "I think you've lost it." Kyle took a step to the side and gawped at the two men who had entered. They were dressed in suits, but the guns strapped to their shoulders meant that they weren't here to talk about business proposals. One of the man spotted Kyle and turned back to Selena.

"Is this her?" His voice was gruff and his accent was English, but it didn't soothe Kyle anyhow as she made these observations.

"Do you know another redheaded, green eyed teenager with an attitude problem?" The man chuckled and shook his head.

"I don't think I've had the pleasure of meeting her yet, Miss Valentine. But no, I do not."

"Well," she stepped away to completely reveal Kyle who looked like a deer in the headlights, "now you do."

"No," Barbie took hold of Kyle's arm and started pulling her back, "you're not." Selena frowned at her sister, who frowned back. "You have officially lost it, Sel. Jay never should've let you stop those medications."

"But this doesn't concern you," Selena placed her hands on the sole hand holding onto Kyle, "so let go of her."

Barbie looked at the newcomers. "What are you going to do with her?"

"We won't hurt her, Miss. We've been recruited by Miss Wascher and Miss Valentine to protect and escort her." The other man merely nodded in agreement. Barbie stared at him in surprise and Selena took the chance to take her hand off.

Kyle blinked and turned her attention to the men. "Protect me? From what? Wait," she blinked again as the rest of the sentence hit her, "escort me? Escort me where?"

The man who spoke turned to Selena. "You didn't tell her?"

"I thought I'll let the boss do that for me..." The Asian replied dryly with a glare at the man, who gulped and chuckled nervously.

"Right."

"Protect me from what?"

"Selena," all eyes but Selena's turned to Marlene, "what did you do?"

The lady waved a hand in the air. "It's being taken care of. Don't worry."

"Don't worry?" Marlene repeated in disbelief, unable to comprehend the person before her. Surely her best friend wasn't hiding anything from her, was she? "How come you never told me you were sending her away? Better yet, why do you have to send her away? What did you do, Selena?"

Selena didn't look at her as she answered, keeping her eyes to the empty and abandoned counter of the diner. "Because you would find every reason not to and I know it's not the wisest thing to do. And I'll repeat what I said. It's being taken care of."

Kyle swallowed the lump in her throat as she unconsciously rubbed her wrist. "If it's being taken care of, why do I have to go?"

Selena was about to answer but the man beat her to it. "Because you're a liability to Miss Valentine?"

"You," Selena narrowed her eyes at him, "shut it. We're not paying you to talk, idiot."

"Apologies, Miss Valentine." The man nodded in respect before gesturing to the door. "Shall we, Miss Millender?"

Kyle blinked for the thousand time that day and turned wide eyed to the Asian. "Selena?"

"Move along, kid. She's not paying for the jet to wait."

"I, I can't. I need more time. I can't just-"

"Miss Millender," the other guard who hadn't talked until now spoke, "we really don't have time for this. If we don't move now, the other forces will be alerted of your departure and we will have a hard time arriving in the safe zone."

"I'm sorry. I don't get anything." The man sighed and looked over at Selena, who raised a brow.

"I'm trying to be very patient here, Miss Valentine, but I don't do very well with kids."

Selena rolled her eyes and turned back to Kyle. "You're leaving, and that's that. Don't leave the limo waiting, child."

"Limo?" Marlene and Kyle repeated, staring at Selena like the female had just grown another head.

"How did you get a limo?/A limo now? Where are you getting the money?" The questions were made of pure shock, but they seemed to calm the Asian down.

"I know what you two are doing, but I won't let this get any further." Selena gestured forward to Kyle as she looked at the two men. They nodded and approached Kyle, who shook her head as she backed away.

"Selena, please." Kyle begged as she looked over to Selena, whose face had hardened. "I don't want to go."

"You don't have a choice."

"But I need more time."

"You're running out of it. It's too precious to be wasted now." The Asian turned her back to them and crossed her arms. "Take her away."

"Please don't leave me alone!"

"You're not-" Selena stopped short as the girl sobbed and dropped to her knees before her, hands clasped with her green eyes begging.

"Selena, please. Don't leave me." She blinked, a sudden and familiar image flashing before her.

_"Selena," a girl was kneeling on the ground, a few years younger than the Asian, "please. Don't leave me. You can't go." She had black curled hair and the same red brown eyes, but her features differed to the older Asian._

_"I," Selena pulled the hand holding onto hers away, feeling slightly perturbed, "have to go."_

_"Please. Don't leave me. You swore that you would never leave me. You said you would protect me no matter what and be there for me."_

_"I'm sorry, Savvy. Don't worry, okay? I'll be back. I promise."_

_"Liar!" The girl spat angrily and got to her feet. "Promises are meant to be broken! Don't even think of returning!" She pushed the teenager away and ran down the hall. Selena didn't look back and swallowed, trying hard not to cry. She shook her head and took a step forward, only to be stopped by a voice screaming her name._

_She whirled around, "Savannah! No! Not her! NO! PLEASE! TAKE ME INSTEAD!" She dropped the bag and ran toward her, hoping she could at least reach them..._

Selena sucked in a deep breath and took an unsteady step back. Her hand flew to her hair and she greedily gulped in the air, blinking back into focus.

"Selena?" Kyle's voice brought her back and she stared down at the redhead, the recent memory still fresh in her mind like it happened only yesterday. "Are you alright?" A dark expression overcame Selena and her mouth settled into a thin line.

"Hell no." She murmured through gritted teeth before reaching down and grabbing Kyle by the arm. She jerked her up and without waiting for the girl to stand properly, started dragging her to the door.

"Se-Selena! Wait, please wait! I can't," she struggled to walk but the lady was too fast for her liking and before she knew it, the door to a black limo was wide open and she was tossed in. The door shut behind her and she quickly reached for the handle, but it was locked. "No! No, wait, please! Don't leave me! Marlene! B-Barbie!" Another sob escaped and she closed her eyes against the wave threatening to flow from her eyes. "Selena..."

"We," Kyle didn't have to look up to see the man before her. Apparently, he had joined her and she was sure that he was there to make sure she didn't escape. "We are really sorry, but the situation is out of our hands. I assure you, this was done in both Miss Valentine's and your mother's best interests for you." She didn't answer and continued sobbing into her hands as the limo started moving.

* * *

"Just like that?" Kowalski asked haughtily as he stood behind her, watching the vehicle drive away. "You're just going to give her away?" The others were too shell shocked but the look on Marlene's face as he passed to go after the two told him a lot of things. The ones that stuck were sadness and betrayal. She too had ran off, but in the opposite direction, probably to the back of the diner. From the corner of his eye, he could have sworn that he saw Skipper go off in the same direction, but he didn't check. Instead, he concentrated on the scene before joining the Asian.

"She's where she needs to be, Mikhail."

"And that's not with you? You know her better than anyone, Selena. You knew she wouldn't want to leave you, no matter what you do to push her away." Selena whirled about and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Tell me. Why did your mother leave you with your father?" The man stared at her for a while before sighing and looking down. "Tell me."

"She wanted what's best for me."

"Exactly." It had a harsh tone to it, but she quickly hid it and smiled sadly, taking his hands in hers. "I keep telling you not to compare yourself to her, Mikhail."

"At least you knew what you are doing."

The smile disappeared and she placed a hand on his cheek, making him look at her. "Don't say that. Your mother knew what she was doing when she passed you to him. She just didn't know what he would do to you. It's not her fault, and it's definitely not your fault that your father is a huge pain-in-the-ass bastard."

"Glad to see you on my side for once."

"Just this once, okay?" Selena winked at him and he shook his head with a small grin. It faded away quickly and he licked his lips.

"I need to ask. Does it hurt?"

She frowned in confusion. "What?"

"Does it hurt? When the limo..." The Asian let out a sad sigh and looked down, closing her eyes. "Is love really such a huge problem for you that you can't even say it?" She looked up at him, her mouth in a forced smile.

"It's different from saying 'I love cheese', that's for sure."

He chuckled. "Are you ever serious?"

"If you make me watch a sappy movie just to see me cry, I will punch you." She giggled at his appalled look before shaking her head and adding. "I think we both know Penny enough. If she loves something,"

"She would do everything for it." Kowalski echoed her and sighed.

"I know. I've been her friend for a long time."

"And," Selena added with a livelier grin, "it's not going to be the last time I see her."

"No, it won't. Did you really have to pull out all that drama?"

"I tried to be less dramatic, but noooo, they all had to act like she's going to die."

"But, you still have the chance to say goodbye. I know you hate goodbyes," he raised one of the hands still in his and lightly kissed the top of it before looking down at her, "but it'll give you one last chance."

"One last chance..." She repeated softly and stared at the hand he kissed, feeling a wave of tiredness from the past few days come to her.

He nodded and dropped his hand, still not letting go of hers. "Just in case."

"Just in case..."

"My mother never came back, but maybe you can see her off?"

"I can't...It's too much to ask from Penny." _And I can't bear another one..._

"Penny will allow it. It's not easy, and she knows it. She'll allow it. You just need to be there."

"I-"

"Selena. Trust me on this. Just give a proper goodbye. Promise, no _swear_, you'll explain everything to her when there's time. Whatever you've gotten yourself into, you have to tell someone sometime. you can't keep it to yourself, Selena. you have to swear to that." Selena licked her lips and closed her eyes before nodding. "Thank you." Before she could go, he pulled her gently to him and touched his lips to the top of her head. She blinked her eyes in surprise before looking up at him, catching his eyes. She saw him falter a bit before moving a bit closer and felt herself get drawn in too, wrapping her hands around his neck. She couldn't breathe but she could feel his on her face. It was just so close, so close...until a thought came to her. Her eyes flew open and her hands traveled from his neck to his chest, pushing him away.

"I don't...I can't. I'm sorry." He looked at her in surprise, hand outstretched as she ran away. He watched sadly as his hand fell to his side and she disappeared into a side street.

* * *

**_Ta da! I updated! :3 XD I'd like to know what you think of Selena now though. I'm intrigued to what you have to say about the _****strange _and heartless female I'm starting to make her to be...*grins* Remember when she used to be the shy and joking female?_**

**_A question for my readers. Why do you think Selena's like that? Clue: Go back a _****few _chapters. Clue's there. XD_**


	18. Beliefs

**Chapter 15: Beliefs**

"Na na na na!" The two drunken voices sang into the night, followed by giggles. "That's how it's gonna be! Young, wild and free!" The laughter continued as the two females tried their best to walk in a straight line. Well, one was tottering on her heels while holding onto the other who was carrying her own heels and their bags.

"That," Marlene turned to the other with a goofy smile on her face, "was awesome!"

Selena giggled, covering her mouth to keep them from becoming too loud. "Totally."

"Can't believe you told Shelly that though..."

The Asian groaned and rolled her eyes. "She was getting soooo annoying, m'kay? Beeesides, I'm not gonna just let that two headed hydra witch get away with what she said about Barbie. My sister is not a..." Selena trailed off, rolling her hand in the air before turning to Marlene. "Ya know." The two stared at each other, and burst out into giggles.

"Really?"

"The word's censored!"

"Kyle's not here!" Marlene slurred, linking her arm with Selena's. "Come awn!"

"Nuh-uh, sistah. I got rules."

"Please?"

"I told you, the word's censored. I'm not just going to-"

"Oh come on! You so owe me." Marlene held up a finger and poked Selena. "You didn't tell me about the Kyle situation, or ANYTHING, about what you're doing or going to do. I don't even know how," the woman paused as a hiccup came, "you got into trouble. And I've been with you, for, like, forevah!"

"We went out." Selena looked down at herself and tugged at the edge of the fabric clinging to her form. "And I'm wearing a dress. A dress." She scrunched up her nose is disgust. "A skin suffocating dress that is very short and lacking coverage of appropriate areas. This is torture enough."

"But it's just a word! Just say it already."

"Marlene."

"Please?"

"No."

"But why?" The woman whined, still clinging onto Selena. The other looked the other way and stared at the sky. "Selena!" Marlene glared at the back of her friend's head, before rolling her eyes and tugging Selena forward. "Well, I may have forgiven you for lying and hiding about everything to me, but you'll have to work harder to," the lady let out a gasp as she tripped on a loose stone on the pavement, "eek!" She fell forward, bringing Selena with her. Their screams echoed into the unusually quiet night as their bags and Selena's heels bounced away.

"Ugh..." Selena groaned from the pavement, not even bothering to lift her head from the uneven surface.

"Look what we have here." Her eyes widened in surprise and she sat up, only to realize her awkward situation regarding her dress and the way she was splayed on the ground. Quickly, with one hand holding the high hem down and the other as leverage, she turned to face the man standing above her. "Hello, Miss Valentine."

"Do I know you?"

"Maybe. Maybe not." She narrowed her eyes at him, and then glanced to the side when Marlene moaned beside her.

"Marlene? You alright?" She whispered to the lady, who sat up beside her holding her head.

"Selena..." Marlene groaned and closed her eyes. "What happened..."

"How's your friend?" His unfamiliar voice filled her ears, disgusting her to the core although she tried not to show it. Instead of answering, she just stared at him. He rolled his eyes and hoisted the lady up, despite her protests.

"Don't touch me." She growled, only to be met with a hand.

"Listen to me, Valentine. You're coming with us," her eyes caught the flashes of metal on the other men surrounding them, "whether you like it or not. Or your friend here," he snapped his fingers without taking his eyes off her and a couple of men moved forward to pick Marlene up.

"Wha," the Californian blinked and looked about, slightly groggy, "what's going on? Selena, who..." She trailed off and bit down on her lip when she felt something cold touch the back of her head.

"Be a good girl, Valentine. It's not hard, is it?"

"Oh," Selena blankly murmured as she was pulled away, "you have no idea..." She glared at him. "And I'm supposed to believe that you will let my friend go?" Without stopping, the man turned with an evil grin to his comrades.

"Do what you want with her. I'm just interested in this one." He held up Selena's arm which he was gripping tightly before tugging her forward, making the female stumble and scrape her bare legs on the road. He pulled her again to force her upright and Selena looked back in time to see Marlene bite the arm of one of her captor's and elbow the other. Once she was free, she glanced briefly at Selena, understanding going through the two, before running off, as much as she could with heels on.

Selena hid her smirk and turned back front. Her relief was short lived when a familiar scream filled her ears.

"Probably wasn't the best thing for her to do." The Asian's captor spoke to the sullen female. "Don't you think?"

"I didn't know you needed a brain, Harvey." The man stopped abruptly. "Of course, I didn't expect you to think either."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "So you do know me..."

"Of course I do." She grinned slowly. "I know everybody. _I know everybody..._" Before she knew it, there was a knife around her neck.

"You bitch..."

"That's a dog. I'm a cat, actually. At least, that's what they call me."

"You're going to tell me where he is, alright? If not, we're using you as bait."

"Who exactly?" The grin never left her face. "I know a lot of people." Harvey was about to answer when the click of the safety going on echoed into the night.

"Let go of the weapon and the lady," Selena relaxed greatly at the sound of the authoritative voice, "and back away." She didn't have to look to see that it was Skipper behind them.

"Officer," Harvery chuckled as he faced the man, hiding the knife in his sleeve, "it's just a misunderstanding. I was just having a chat with-"

"With a knife?" Skipper scoffed, gun still trained on the two. "I've got eyes, I'm not blind." Behind him was Marlene and Private, the former a little disoriented with a few cuts on her face but worried nonetheless and the later glaring at the man holding onto Selena. "One more time. Let go of the weapon and the lady, and back away. Now."

"There's no need for hostility, officer. I was just telling my lovely girlfriend here-"

"She's your girlfriend now, is she?" A baritone voice spoke to the right, as cold as Skipper's. "Didn't you tell him who you were with, babe?" Selena raised a brow at Kowalski, whose deadly expression didn't change.

Harvey took a step back. "B-Bennett?" Kowalski's brows furrowed at him but he didn't lower the gun he had pointed at the man. "You're dating Valentine?"

"Do I know you?

"I tried telling him that," Selena shrugged, like she wasn't currently being held hostage, "but he wouldn't listen." Kowalski ignored her and focused on the man.

"How do you know us?"

"Question should be," Selena crossed her arms, bored, "'how come you didn't know I was on duty when I'm a fucking cop'?" Kowalski sent her a look that meant 'are you fucking serious right now?'. She shrugged in return and turned her head, but the knife came back to her throat, with Harvey's arm around her waist. She heard Marlene's audible gasp and saw Skipper frown, but she was only interested in the movement she caught from the corner of her eye.

"I wasn't aware that two Illusionists were together. I guess I'll be getting two birds with one stone." Selena shook her head, mindful of the blade on her skin.

"He's not an Illusionist. He was just there."

"He's the son of Bennett Senior. He practically lived there. I don't think it's avoidable."

"Please. Does that guy look like an Illusionist to you? A cop?" She winced when the blade managed to cut through the top layer of skin but continued. "Do you think an Illusionist would have anything to do with the law? We make our own laws. We don't follow anyone, except for the blood pact."

"How many of you are left actually?"

"Not relevant."

"Answer me."

She repeated her answer, face blank of any emotions. "Do you think he'll keep your family alive?" The hand in her hair tightened. "Even if you bring me to him, you'll never see Sarah and Gina again. I doubt you'll live either." Pressure on the blade made a tiny trickle fall from her neck, and she kept her mouth shut.

"You-" Harvey growled in her ear, but something slammed into his side, sending the two of them to the ground.

Selena rolled onto her stomach, groaning into the pavement at the fact that her head had collided with the ground again. She turned slightly to see Harvey battling Rico on the pavement. Another turn and she saw the tied up comrades of Harvey sitting on the pavement, dazed.

She used her forehead to push herself up along with her hands and then her knees, just as a pair of feminine hands hooked themselves under her arms and helped her up. "Selena?" The gratitude stopped on the Asian's tongue when she recognized the voice. Barbie stepped before her, concern written all over her face. The blonde's eyes drifted to the cut and she reached a hand to it. "Your neck. He," Selena took hold of her hand and placed her own on the cut and looked away.

"I'm fine."

"Selena," the Asian walked off abruptly, leaving Barbie hanging. In the background, she could hear Skipper ordering Rico, Barbie and Private to escort the men to their new homes. The words became indistinct as she tuned them out and picked up her discarded bag, taking out a black ribbon of velvet before placing it over the cut, buttoning it down in place. She slung the clutch bag around her shoulder and turned to face Kowalski, or rather his chest. She looked up when he crossed his arms and saw him staring down at her in disdain.

"It's no wonder you caught some attention tonight." Selena was about to answer when Marlene tapped Kowalski, who turned to the woman with a raised brow.

"I told her she had to wear a dress if she wanted me to forgive her for not telling me about Kyle." Selena closed her mouth, sighed and gestured to Marlene. The man stared at the two of them before shaking his head and walking away. "That's it?" Marlene called disbelievingly after him. "You're just going to, _walk away_?" He sighed and turned to face them.

"What do you want me to do?"

"I don't know. Something? Hey, Selena," the brunette turned to her friend, "what happened to your date?" Selena slapped her face as Kowalski crossed his arms and spoke bluntly to the woman.

"Marlene, you're drunk."

Selena rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "No duh, Sherlock." Before either party could speak, she popped open the clutch again and pulled out a black leather string necklace, with its three pendants dangling from it. Kowalski's eyes ignored the other two as they focused on the circular pendant. It was black and silver, with several tiny gems of different shades of blue arranged like spiral rays to a yellowish red topaz in the middle and the edge of the pendant had small violet gems lining it.

The sound of the clasp shutting made him go back to reality and he grabbed the pendant, unknowingly pulling forward the surprised Asian.

"Where did you get this?" She blinked at him and looked down at his hand, which had turned white knuckled from gripping the pendant too tightly. It released its grip and went to her shoulder, the other hand doing the same to the other side. "Selena," his voice became a dangerous growl, "where did you get this?"

"You recognize it then?"

"You liar." His eyes glittered dangerously in anger, already visibly in the fists by his sides. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

A cruel smile graced her face. "I thought you knew."

"You lied to me. You lied to Jay too, didn't you? You lied to everyone!"

"I didn't lie. I simply didn't tell the truth." She shrugged like it was no problem. "There's a difference."

"How long have you been hiding this? Did you deliberately not wear it when you barged into our HQ?" She tilted her head to the other side, just observing him. "How messed up do you want me to be, Selena? Why are you doing this to me?"

"I don't see why you should be so concerned, Mikhail. I mean, I don't include myself into your life, do I?" He stared at her blankly and she nodded in understanding. "You see my logic, don't you? I'm sure you know what you should do now."

"No." He grabbed her hand. "You're coming with me." He tugged her forward and the lady struggled to keep up with his long strides.

She tried to pry his hand off her wrist to no use. "Let me go. Mikhail," she winced when his grip tightened and she dropped any attempt to take his hand off, "let me go. You really don't want to do this."

"And why-"

"KOWALSKI!" A voice screeched from behind the two and Kowalski stopped, only to be attacked by Marlene. "What are you going to do to my best friend, you maniac?! Let her go, meanie! Let her go!"

"Marlene," Skipper dodged a swing from the brunette and brought his arms around her, "stop it."

"Let me GO!" She screamed in his ear, making him wince, but he didn't let go. "Let me go! I'm going to kill him!"

"Calm down, doll. They're just going to have a talk." Skipper grunted when she thrashed about. "Marlene." He spoke through gritted teeth.

She let out a couple of breaths, already done with escaping and nodded with a sigh. "Fine." Skipper sighed back and loosened his grip a bit, only to cry out in pain when a heel crushed his foot.

He cursed inaudibly before glaring at her. "That was a cheap shot!" She glared back and slapped him. Barbie and Private gasped in shock while Kowalski and Rico stared on. The officer was in a similar state, staring at Marlene like she had lost it.

"Don't ever touch me, mister." She growled in his face. "Or I swear..."

He shook his head in disbelief. "How many did you have?" Her features creased into a frown.

"What?"

"How many did you drink, Marlene?" He spoke slowly, like he was talking to a child.

"Huh?" He sighed and proceeded to rephrase his question. "Oh!" She giggled, leaving Skipper slightly disturbed. She turned her attention from him to something behind him and waved, still giggling. "Bye, Sely!" Surprised, he turned around to see the female getting onto her motorcycle, which was nowhere in sight just moments ago, and firing it up. The other surprising thing was the fact that she was wearing a pair of jeans, a shirt and a jacket, the dress gone.

A smirk appeared on the Asian's face from under the visor of her helmet and she saluted them with two fingers before turning the bike down the road.

"No." Kowalski ran after the female, but the bike was already far off. "No!" He stared after it in desperation, gripping his hair tightly before dropping his hands to the sides.

"I'm tired..." Marlene mumbled under her breath before her eyes rolled back and she slumped forward. Skipper caught her before her face could kiss the pavement. He struggled to keep her upright before sweeping the woman off her feet and carrying her bridal style, hugging her to him.

"How did I not notice this before?" Kowalski ranted in disbelief, running his hands through his hair in distress. "It was right in front of our eyes this whole time. We're fools. Complete fools!" He threw his hands down angrily and slammed them on a wall. "Idiots! Imbeciles! Harebrained cavemen-"

"Care to elaborate, Kowalski?" Skipper called to the man dryly as he adjusted Marlene so that she was comfortable against him. The little snores she was emitting was making it hard for him to ignore the smile trying to creep onto his face in the serous situation.

Kowalski turned to the man, the disbelief back on his face. "That pendant. The circular one. Don't you recognize it?"

"I'm not one to go jewelry shopping, Kowalski. And I _asked_ you to elaborate."

"It's a family crest. The Delphi family crest. Blowhole's crest." Skipper almost dropped Marlene. "She knows Blowhole. And I'll bet that she knows where he is."


	19. Lies & Half-Truths (Part 1)

**A/N: I forgot to mention that this was Sci-Fi...he he, sorry? :P**

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**Chapter 16: Lies &amp; Half-Truths (Part 1)**

"...agh." Kowalski set the beaker down as gently as his anger would allow him and dropped onto the stool. His fingers ran through his hair and he stared at the papers before him. He looked up, the open door of his lab giving him access to the office he shared with the others. They were busy doing their own work, minus Private who was at school as Andy, though Skipper would look up once in a while to check on him. Their eyes connected for a second before Kowalski drifted over to the door near Barbie's workstation. The one leading to the chief's office. He looked back at the table, eyeing the corner of a picture peeking from the stack. He took it out and stared at it before looking over at the closed door. "I have got nothing to lose."

The picture in hand, Kowalski marched out of the lab and headed straight for the door, ignoring the looks he got from his teammates.

"Kowalski." His hand paused on the knob and he turned to Barbie, who didn't stop typing away at the computer or look at him. "I'm pretty sure he knows what's going on." He frowned at her when she continued to stare at the screen before pushing open the door and closing it behind him with a soft click.

"Barbie," Jay murmured without looking up from the file he was going over, "didn't I tell you that I was busy at the moment?"

"Did you know that Selena had Kyle transferred?"

Jay froze before looking up at the man standing by the door. "Kowalski?" The scientist walked to the table and casually sat down.

"Did you?" Jay stared at him for a while before closing the file and putting it away, placing his clasped hands on the table.

"Is there something wrong, Kowalski?"

"Answer me, Jay." The older man frowned at his tone but didn't say anything.

"Yes."

"And you let her?"

"She's a grown woman, Kowalski. If she thinks that's best for Kyle, than so be it."

"Did you know why she did it?"

"Is there something bothering you, Kowalski?"

"Yes. I want to know what you know. And I will know if you lie to me, so don't even try it." He placed the picture on the table and Jay glanced at it briefly before turning his attention back to the man. "I want to know why she's still alive."

"For someone like you," Jay muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing at him angrily, "I didn't think you would want her to stay alive."

"That was a cover. Just like my so-called _love_ for Doris."

"Anything to please your father, is that right?"

Kowalski scoffed and looked away. "If I wanted to please him, I should have just killed myself in the first place. He would be _very,_" he turned back to Jay, "happy."

A weird silence encased the two before Kowalski leaned forward and tapped the photo on the table. "What happened to her brother?" Without looking at the picture of a younger and happy looking Selena hugging a boy with the cowboy hat on his head shadowing his face, Jay answered solemnly.

"Why don't you ask her?"

"She doesn't remember. And I want to know why."

"Same reason why she doesn't remember my son." Kowalski's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "She has a stepbrother too. A few years older than Kyle."

"What," the younger male faltered a bit, eyes going over the impassive man's face, "happened to the boy?"

"This is not up for discussion, Bennett. If you don't have any progress on finding my daughter, I want you out of my office. Now."

"What is she doing, Jay? What is she hiding? I need to know if we're going to find her."

"And you believe that I know?" The man sharply countered with a dangerous look in his eyes.

"Shouldn't you be keeping tabs on her? You are her parental figure, after all."

"Are you telling me how to do my job, Bennett."

"No, sir. I just want to know what she's been doing that would make her suddenly disappear for a month. Nobody, not even Fire, knows where she is. She left the dog behind, but for some reason he has been well fed."

Jay sighed and rubbed his temples. "That would be Marlene's doing. She was hoping Selena would turn up somehow."

"Then I can only tell you that Selena won't be turning up unless something happens."

"Kowalski-"

"She's not going to come back until something happens. Don't you get it? She's in league with Blowhole somehow." Jay's eyebrow perked slightly but Kowalski caught the motion. "Has she went away before?"

There was a pause before Jay answered. "I only know that she tends to go out of the city occasionally to meet a few friends."

"And how long are these visits?"

"No more than two days. Always. You do know that she works for Miss Penelope Wascher? It's a secretariat job. I believe it's compensation for"

"For her fashion business?" Jay just stared at him, studying him. "I remember that Penny's father was a mob boss. Selena wouldn't happen to be working on that side, would she?"

"That girl will do anything to keep trouble to herself alone."

"Is that what she's afraid of? If whoever is against Penny 'family business' has a grudge to get rid of her adopted daughter-"

"Penny owes Selena for helping her take care of Kyle instead of letting her father get rid of the child. Penny has enough forces on her side to keep anyone from knowing who Kyle really is and to keep her out of harm's way. A petty grudge, as you put it, is nothing compared to what Selena's dealing with. But nobody knows what that is, because the girl is too selfish with secrets she can keep." Jay leaned back as he picked up the picture and looked over it. "If I were to be honest, I believe she's trying to stop the threat looming ahead, but can't. And it doesn't seem to be helping her sanity, if her recent hallucinations and anxiety attacks are any indication."

Jay held onto the picture and sat up straight on the big wooden chair.

"Didn't a certain 'Edward Jefferson' almost get incinerated some time ago? If it wasn't for a mistake in rescheduling, you would've been dead."

"I'm not sure if it's a mistake..." Kowalski murmured as he remembered the way that Selena placed the schedule card before her safety.

"Get the team in here. I need to discuss a few things."

It wasn't long before the entire team, minus Private, was settled in the office, and Jay's inexpressive eyes swept over them.

"Even though there have been no other attempts," the man started, still not showing any emotion, "the team isn't any closer to solving the mystery at all."

"It's not a terrorist." Everyone turned to Kowalski, who had blurted it out. "That's what you're telling me, aren't you? Someone's out to get me."

"You're not _that_ special, Bennett." Jay commented dryly. "But yes. Apparently someone has called out your alter ego. The rest of you are currently at stake here."

"That's not possible." Skipper spoke up, not moving his eyes from the linoleum below him. "We were so careful. All the precautions, the stories, the lies. Something is just no adding up here. First, Kowalski tells me that Selena _knows_ Blowhole, since she has the Delphi family crest. Second, the female disappears after pretending to get drunk and almost getting capture by a bunch of amateur retrievers."

"Did he tell you who the other pendant belonged to?" Skipper looked up sharply at Jay before turning to Kowalski, who looked caught.

He cleared his throat when Skipper narrowed his eyes at him.

"It's another family crest." He licked his lips.

"To who?"

"It's...it's," Kowalski crossed his arms, keeping his gaze away from Skipper's intense one.

"Spit it out, Kowalski!"

"It's mine...It's the Bennett family crest."

Skipper continued to stare at the man before letting out an aggravated sigh. "I'm confused." He gestured to Kowalski as he looked to Jay. "How is he related to this mess? I knew he used to go to school with Selena, but that is all."

Jay looked from Skipper to Kowalski and back again. "I will assume that your lieutenant has refused to tell you about how his _dear_ father used to be one of the co-owners of The Institution."

Skipper glowered at him, taking steps to Kowalski who countered him. "And you were going to tell me this," his hands grabbed onto the lapels of Kowalski's shirt and pulled him down to face level, "_when_?"

"It's not important."

"Do NOT," his grip tightened, "put words in my mouth, Kowalski. Your job is to give me the information I need. And right now, whatever you are holding back could be the very thing I need to solving this crack ass mystery behind your reckless girlfriend, got it? You will not refrain anything, and I mean ANYTHING from me. Or I swear..."

Kowalski swallowed audibly and nodded. "Yes, sir. I read you loud and clear." Skipper glared at him before letting go and taking a step back.

"Before you start, Kowalski," Jay's calm voice showed no sign of distress from the earlier argument as he looked over the four of them, "I would like to tell you that if Selena wasn't there with him, in The Institution where our boy here grew up in, he would be the one you would be fighting against right this moment. That should be enough reason not to hate on him so much." With a nod to Kowalski, Jay leaned back, studying the picture yet again.

"Alright...Where should I begin?"


End file.
